Zephyr
by The Author's Mighty Pen
Summary: Army Major Anna Smith and photojournalist John Bates work together in Afghanistan trying to piece people back together. What they do not expect is to piece history back together too. Once there was John Bates, foreign correspondent, and Anna Schmidt, German national… and their tale still needs telling.
1. Blown by a Strong, North Wind

Kandahar, Afghanistan - Present Day

She took a deep breath, readying herself for the heat wave that pummeled her out the door of the plane. Turning to the woman at her side, while putting on her sunglasses, she spoke, "Don't tell me it's like this everyday Gwen."

"No ma'am." The redhead stared straight ahead, trying to keep her face straight. "Some days it's hotter."

"Wonderful."

"Major Smith." She turned toward the gray haired man coming toward her. They saluted one another before embracing. "It's good to see you Anna."

"And you General Crawley." Anna stepped back, "Though your wife asks that you kindly remember that video-chat works both ways."

"I'm sure she does." He opened his hand toward the building, "This way."

They weaved between the makeshift cubicles and tables of cables and computers toward a courtyard formed by the placement of the metal buildings. General Crawley ducked them into another building and opened his arms to it. "Welcome to your base of operations."

"What kind of surgeries is this prepped to handle?" Anna removed her sunglasses and squinted at the hospital beds and equipment operated under the careful attention of uniformed nurses. "And who's working under me."

"We've got Doctor Clarkson, from the Red Cross, operating with us here on behalf of a few agencies worried over the refugees. He spends most of his time out in the camps so you'll only be together for surgeries and staff meetings. Sybil's handling the nurses under the direction of Head Nurse Crawley." General Crawley pointed them out at the far end of the ward. "But you're in charge of surgeries and rotations."

"And I thought my days of handling whiny complaints was over." Anna sighed, "But I'm guessing they're all business here?"

"We've only ever had problems with our staff when it's their off hours." General Crawley pointed to the beds. "A few cases of dehydration, one stomach bug, two with food poisoning, and one woman we think might be pregnant."

"Oh?"

General Crawley waved it away, "She and her husband serve together and I think they weren't as careful as they thought they were."

Anna turned to Gwen, "Would you meet with both Nurses Crawley and find a time they can meet with me to go over patient charts and the rundown. I want to get started as soon as I can."

"Yes ma'am." Gwen saluted and Anna turned to General Crawley, "I'll get this place in order sir."

"I hope so." He shook his head, "Our outfit's been under scrutiny since that article ran and it's got me up to here with all these reporters and government types trying to nose in and insist we're doing it all wrong."

"Strap them in a vest once and they think they know what they're doing." Anna agreed, following General Crawley back out into the sweltering heat. "But it's just an article. I'm sure it'll all blow over in time."

"It's why I need to introduce you to someone else." General Crawley cringed, "He's being assigned to you since it keeps him out of trouble, satisfies my superiors, and keeps his editor happy."

"Are you giving me a tail, sir?"

"Yes."

"With all due respect sir, I think that's a horrible idea."

"He's seen his share of battlefields so you won't have to worry about a weak stomach."

"The state of his stomach isn't my concern." Anna took a breath, "I'm more worried over the potential he has to distract and disclose, sir."

"That's why I insisted on the reporter you've got." General Crawley motioned for her to follow him and they went toward a small set of tents. Ducking inside General Crawley pointed to one of the men. "That's him."

Anna's breath caught and she coughed. It was enough to bring the man's head up. He squinted and then his jaw dropped.

Pushing back from his computer in a hurry, wiping his hands on his trousers, he stuck a hand out to General Crawley. "Sir, sorry for the mess."

"It's your jurisdiction and you can do what you like here." General Crawley raised an eyebrow, "Though I would've thought someone with your training would be a bit more spic-and-span about it all."

"It's the newbies they've rolled in." He jerked a thumb over his shoulder, "They're like children waiting for their mother to clean up after them."

"Then you'll appreciate the ward Major Smith runs." General Crawley stepped back, bridging the gap between them. "John Bates, this is Major Smith. She'll be taking over from Colonel Call and get our field hospital ship-shape and Bristol fashion in no time."

"Pleasure to meet you Major." He extended his hand and Anna shook it.

"Likewise, Mr. Bates." She pulled back, "I'm familiar with your work and, to be honest, I don't really see how you'll write about Kandahar since I can't see it as the next vacation destination for millennials."

"Not unless they donned a military uniform, no." Mr. Bates ran a hand through his hair, "But it's what I did before they let me off easy with travel and food pieces."

"Bit of a traveler before then?"

"It's the nicest way to refer to enlisted service in the army." Mr. Bates turned back to General Crawley. "Unlike this man."

"John and I served together when I was a young lieutenant." General Crawley clapped a hand on Mr. Bates's shoulder. "Saved my life once."

"Came in handy to get me this post." Mr. Bates nodded at Anna. "I'm sure you're not much more excited about my being here than he is."

"I'll admit, I find reporters distracting and frustrating in the course of my work but I'll manage. It's what we do in the military."

"That it is." General Crawley clapped his hands together. "I'll leave you two to get a bit more acquainted and see you at dinner."

General Crawley left and Anna crossed her arms over her chest, raising an eyebrow at Mr. Bates. " _Pleasure to meet you Major_? What kind of greeting is that?"

He mimicked her voice back, " _Familiar with your work_? What was that?"

"I wasn't going to tell him which work." Anna grinned, "It'd paint him redder than the Red Cross flag."

"Yeah, best not inform him how we met."

"Why didn't you say anything?"

John grinned to match his shrug, "He didn't ask."

"He didn't know to ask." Anna looked over her shoulder to ensure they were alone before taking a step forward to throw her arms around John's neck. "I missed you."

"I missed you too." John held her tightly before releasing. "We'll have to be as professional as possible though."

"Since I don't really want to explain what happened in Bangkok last year I think that's wise." Anna drew in a breath, "How's everything?"

"I'm back on the war desk so there's that."

"I didn't think they called it that anymore."

"Normally no but I like it. Sounds a bit more noble."

Anna snapped her fingers, "That's right, you were working on that story from Paris weren't you."

"You read my emails?"

"With fervor." Anna urged him on, "Go on, your last email didn't mention anything about it."

"That's because it's stalled."

"Why?"

John threw his hands in the air. "My editor thinks there's no story there, my leads are all being blocked by interns making pittance at government record offices or old women who can't use computers, and records buried in back cabinets I can't get to without a lot more time off than I can afford to take."

Anna cringed, "Sounds awful. I thought there was potential to that one."

"There still is." John leaned toward her, "I had a lead on something and I'm still waiting to get word back but I don't want anyone scooping the story."

"Not sure there's a chance that someone scoops a story that's almost eighty years old."

"You never know." John tapped the side of his nose, "Between us, I think there's more to it."

"I think there is too. It's romantic."

"It certainly is."

They stood in comfortable silence a moment before Anna jerked a thumb toward the outside of the tent. "I've got to get back to the ward and meet with my aide before I try and rein in that dumpster fire."

"It's not so bad." John waved a hand. "It got bad when Doctor Fellowes took ill but Doctor Clarkson's stepped in enough to keep it all running."

"But I'm not running a Doctors Without Borders hospital. That thing needs to run like the military."

"Underfunded, overly bureaucratic, and inefficient?"

She pursed her lips, "Keep talking like that and I'll tell everyone about that man in Bangkok. The one you thought was a woman."

"It was impeccable drag."

"And if not for you being a little over-enthusiastic the story would've had a better ending." Anna taunted, wagging her finger at him, "Don't disrespect."

"You?" John lowered his voice, bending close to her ear, "Never."

"Good." She took a deep breath, "Does the shadowing start now?"

"It'll get the press off Robert's back and that's what I'm here to do."

Anna snorted, "Loyal to the last?"

"Of course." Joh puffed out his chest, "Once a soldier, always a soldier."

"I'm sure that's exactly what people say." Anna turned over her shoulder, "But since I'm the only one who's still a soldier according to the British government, why don't we start with that inevitable list of questions you've got to rattle off to me about how we're going to correct everything so what happened won't happen again."

John sobered, "It's a cheap shot, what they did."

Anna shrugged, "The media's never been the biggest fan of the military so it's only a matter of time before their incessant chipping at our armor revealed a weakness." She paused, "Present company excluded I hope."

"Of course. I'm ever a patriot."

"Better than Mr. Barrow I'm sure." Anna ducked out of the tent and they walked toward the field hospital. "What prat goes to the trouble of hounding a poor corporal until he snaps and then writes about disorganization on base?"

John shook his head, "Thomas set our whole relationship back to the stone age with that stunt."

"Why'd he do it?"

"Other than because he's a huge dick?" John blustered a moment, "He was on a deadline to get something of worth to his editor before they pulled him to the Russian desk or something and so he dug for it. They say even a blind squirrel finds a nut but he just took dynamite to the forest to get his."

"Stupid blighter." Anna opened the door, "He'll have every ex-serviceman across the face of the nation spilling drinks over his head for the rest of his life."

"I doubt it." Anna frowned and John hurried to explain, "He's not exactly visiting those sorts of bars, if you know what I mean."

"Then was it a lover's thing?"

John laughed, "Who's the reporter here? I'm supposed to be asking you questions."

"You can once I get the lay of the land." Anna went over to a desk, removing her jacket and pulling on a set of gloves. "They pulled me out of the base hospital so fast it made my head spin and sent me here on the first flight they could find. I'm flying blind."

"How ironic given you've the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen."

Anna gave him a smile, "Flattery'll get you everywhere."

"I only need it to get me one place."

"It'll certainly get you there." She spread her arm toward the rest of the room, "Full access to our ward."

"That's not what I meant."

"Oh I know." Anna jerked her head, "But you have to remember, I wasn't that easy in Bangkok either."

"We were married in Bangkok."

"Too bad it was all for show then." As Anna walked toward where Gwen and the nurses gathered she thought she heard John mumble.

"Too bad."

* * *

Berlin, Germany - 1937

He exited the cab, placing his hat on his head. The man barked at him in German and he ducked down to hand over the appropriate change before the taxi drove off. Waving the car away he bent to grab his case and walked toward the building before him.

His knuckles rapped the door but no one answered. He tested it and pushed forward when it gave way. With a deep breath he entered the building.

Desks filled the room and the general shuffle contributed to the din as voices shouted into phones, yelled across the room, and hurried to and fro with stacks of paper in their hands. Dodging two of them, he worked toward a set of offices in the back of the room. As he moved around a staircase two women descended. He tried to step out of their way but only succeeded in bumping into another woman.

She dropped the contents of her arms, spilling the papers all over the floor, and the little group paused. Bending to help her, he dropped his bag and set his cane next to it. "I do apologize."

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm John Bates," He offered his hand but the woman shuffled her papers together and refused his hand. "I'm the new correspondent for the Berlin desk. I'm from the _Manchester Guardian_."

"And you just decided that you could walk right in?"

Before he could respond, one of the women from the stairs turned to him and extended her hand to him. "Well I'm Anna Schmidt. I work the translation desk for your newspaper."

"It'll be a pleasure working with you." John lifted his bag and grabbed his cane. "My conversational German is alright but not quite equal to the task of publishing here in Germany."

"Then it is a good thing I'm here." She smiled, "I happen to like your paper and your articles."

"You've read them then?"

"A few." Anna stepped back a moment, "This is Gwen Dawson, one of the junior editors and you've already met Ms. O'Brien."

"What's her specialty?"

"Secretary to the fashion columnist, Mrs. Cora Crawley." Anna pointed over the room toward an office where O'Brien hurried to hand over the papers in her arm. The woman inside, with glasses perched on her nose, flipped through them quickly before shaking her head and gesticulating for O'Brien to take a note. "It's quite the ordeal for her."

"Looks exhausting." John took a breath, "I'm supposed to report to Mr. Carson."

"Yes, our chief editor." Anna waved him forward, smiling as Gwen peeled off. "This way."

They took the stairs up to an office where a gray-haired man with a significant nose and bushy eyebrows conversed quickly with a shorter woman. Stopping outside the glass, Anna pointed to the man and then the woman. "That's Mr. Carson and the woman is his secretary Mrs. Hughes. If you need anything, you ask her first. Mr. Carson is only to be bothered with the important things."

John nodded, "What's he's he consider important?"

"Your story, when it's due." Anna turned the corner and opened the door after knocking her knuckles on it. "Sorry to interrupt Mr. Carson but a Mr. Bates is here."

"Ah yes," Mr. Carson came around the desk, gave a quick look at the cane, and then sniffed a bit before meeting John's eyes. "I'm Mr. Carson and I'll be your editor while you're under our jurisdiction."

"So Ms. Schmidt told me." John cocked his head toward Anna, "She helped me find your office so I'm rather indebted to her."

"And you'll be more indebted when she gets your stories published for the German-speakers reading our paper." Mr. Carson raised an eyebrow, nodding toward John's cane. "Will that be a problem for you?"

"I'll manage."

"Of course he can." Anna opened her hand toward John, "He's John Bates. He's reported from many battlefields and he'll report just fine from here."

"Hero worship is not completely unappreciated, Ms. Schmidt, but not entirely appropriate in the measure of our new writers." Mr. Carson cleared his throat, clasping his hands behind his back. "If you get a chance to meet our owner, Mr. Crawley, I'd suggest you act with as much dignity as you can muster. He's a gracious man so if you find yourself muddled or tongue-tied in his presence he'll forgive it."

"I'm sure I'll be alright." John jumped slightly when the door behind him opened again and someone grabbed his shoulder.

"Bates you made it!" His hand wrenched from his cane in a solid grip as a gray-haired man about John's hand shook it with vigor. "I thought you wouldn't be here until tomorrow."

"I caught an earlier train since the boat made good time sir."

"It's a pleasure to see you again." The man turned to Mr. Carson, who did his best to contain the wide-eyed shock on his face. "He saved my life in the Somme. Without this man I wouldn't be here today."

"I wasn't aware of that sir."

"That's why I wanted him here." He turned back to John, clapping down on both shoulders, "We'll stand on your excellence and reach greater heights with you here. You've no idea how I've looked forward to you being here. Like old times yes? You and me, slogging it out together."

"I was hoping it'd be a bit less dangerous than our previous engagements, sir." John smiled back as Mr. Crawley nodded and left the room in the same rush of steam he used to enter. Turning back to the faces in the room John noted Anna's grin hidden behind her hand. "You didn't ask."

"I guess I didn't." Mr. Carson collected himself before opening his hand to Anna. "Ms. Schmidt, would you show Mr. Bates to his desk?"

"Yes Mr. Carson." She nodded to John and he followed her lead back down to the floor.

Instead of a desk in the midst of the clamor, Anna guided John to a tiny, windowless office and smiled at it. "All yours Mr. Bates."

"It's so cozy I think I might just die of shock." He set his bag on the desk and stepped back as it wobbled. "Not sure about that though."

"Good luck on fixing it. They're very tight with their money around here." Anna looked over her shoulder toward Mrs. Crawley's office. "Something to do with a heavy investment from her Jewish relatives."

"I don't doubt it." John risked the chair and then nodded. "It's better than a trench or a boat, sweating my way up the Nile or any of those rivers in the Belgian Congo."

"We only have the Rhine here but I do like the Danube." Anna smiled, "We're glad to have you here, Mr. Bates. It'll be a pleasure working with you."

"And you Ms. Schmidt." John stood, shaking her hand again. "A sincere pleasure."


	2. That Time in Bangkok

Kandahar, Afghanistan - Present

Anna raised the bottle to her lips, smiling over the top at John as he opened his hands. "I never said it didn't happen I just said it didn't happen like you tried to tell them."

"Oh come on," Anna managed a quick swig before placing the bottle on the small table between them. "You were trying to deny you almost got had by a tranny in Bangkok."

"It is Bangkok. What else can you expect to happen there?"

Anna scrunched her face and moved her shoulders up and down, "About what happened there."

"Point made." They both laughed as John raised his bottle, pointing at her. "What were you doing there again? I forget what an upstanding combat surgeon like yourself was doing in Bangkok."

"Upstanding surgeons take holidays."

John pffted, "Not to places like the Bangkok red light district."

"It was a dare."

"Nope, don't believe it."

Anna leaned forward, "Believe."

They sat in silence a moment, John resting his bottle on the table, "I think about what happened sometimes."

"Do you?" Anna ran her finger around the edge of her bottle as John nodded. "In a good way?"

"Of course in a good way."

"Because you don't mention it in your emails."

"Your emails are property of the British government and I don't want them accusing you of distributing porn."

Anna snorted, "What we did wasn't that adventurous and we don't even have video so…"

"Still," John shook his head, "I didn't want some intern in the office getting his rocks off on the descriptions of how often I think about what we did and what I wanted to do again."

"Well, that's going to have to wait until we're not so professionally entangled." Anna took another swig of her bottle, "With you as my shadow I don't think it'd be appropriate."

"Definitely not." John smiled at her, "But I am serious."

"I wouldn't accuse you of being anything but." Anna stood, "However, we're going to have to let the past stay past for now and the future…"

"To be continued?"

"To be continued." Anna agreed, "But you can walk me back to my tent since I've not got the lay of the land quite yet and I'd hate to stumble somewhere accidently."

"Yeah, best not do that." John set his bottle next to hers and opened his hand. "Allow me to escort you gracious lady."

"Thank you kind sir." Anna nudged him with her elbow as they fell in step with one another. "I'm still curious about that story, from Paris."

"The one stalled because everything from here to eternity's blocking it?"

"That's the one." Anna shrugged, "I was always fascinated by what you said you found in the archives there."

"Me too." John scratched at his head, "How often do you find traces of a reporter who shares your name and lived over half a century ago?"

"Can't say I've ever found that." Anna paused as a series of trucks passed in front of them. "Then again, I've a really common name so I'd only be surprised if they shared my occupation."

"Really?"

"Try googling 'Anna Smith' and watch how many results come up."

"John Bates isn't much better."

"I'd guess not." Anna sighed, "So you found him?"

"Traces of him. Found a headstone in Yorkshire." John waved it off, "Lovely little spot but there it was, in bold letters: John Bates."

"That's it?"

"Man died in the late eighties but that was all I could get from the headstone." John shrugged, "And he worked at the _Manchester Guardian_ at one point."

"Good on him."

"I know," John smiled, "Man U to the end."

Anna huffed, "That's not what I meant."

"I know." John grinned, "But everything else about him's a total mystery."

"For a reporter that feels exceedingly odd." Anna frowned, "You've not found his articles or anything?"

"I found the ones he wrote for the Guardian before they posted him as a foreign correspondent to Berlin right before World War II but then I can't find any of the articles he wrote while there."

"Is that part of the information problem you were talking about?"

"Or they got rid of what he wrote." John grunted, "There's a few sources that claim he then worked as a war correspondent and they might've tossed his work from Berlin to protect identities or something but overall I think the answers are in Berlin."

"If only you could get there."

"If only." John shrugged, "It's like the realization that most of the history of the earth is lost to time."

"Or that there's music out there you'll never hear because it's in another language or from another century or just because you don't even know it exists." Anna sighed, stopping in front of her tent. "I've been down that rabbit hole and it's kind of depressing at the bottom. I wouldn't recommend camping there."

"I'd offer you the chance to camp on my bed but I think you'd frown on that." John grinned and Anna smiled back.

"Oh, Mr. Bates, you've no idea how much I want to go round two with you but… needs must and the need, right now, is that we must refrain."

"Mores the pity for us."

"It certainly is." Anna held out a hand to him, "But, once you've satisfied your employer and you're no longer my shadow I don't see why we can't play a bit in the shadows ourselves."

"I'd like that." John leaned forward, whispering in her ear, "I do think about that night."

"I do too." Anna replied, "And I'd send you the sordid details but people are reading my emails."

"Ah," John exaggerated a groan, "You're the worst."

"Maybe you could handwrite some to me, like the old days."

"And risk someone opening your mail?" John shook his head, "Best to leave it to the imagination."

"What if I don't live up to expectations?" Anna teased.

"I doubt that's possible."

"Or," Anna gasped, putting her hand to her mouth, "Heaven forefend you don't."

"I highly doubt that." John winked at her, "Goodnight Major. I'll see you in the morning."

"Bright and early, you can participate in PT."

John groaned, "I left military service for a reason."

"You need to keep your stamina up." Anna shrugged, "Just in case the chance ever arises again."

"With that incentive," John stepped back, "I guess I'll see you at O-five-hundred?"

"On the dot." Anna watched him go, her mind wandering to the last time she watched him leave.

* * *

Bangkok, Thailand- One Year Before

Anna swallowed the shot, grimacing and turning to the brunette on the stool next to her. "Alright, you're turn."

"I dare you," She held up a finger, grabbing the counter to keep herself from swaying off the stool, "To walk the red light district."

"That's no fun!" Gwen complained, holding her bottle close to her as someone staggered toward her, tripping from the brightly flashing dance floor. "We won't see it if she goes."

"Then come with me." Anna took the last shot, holding it up, "Because I, Anna May Smith, do take your challenge Mary Crawley."

She knocked the drink back and gagged on it, "Maybe they've got better drinks there anyway."

"WOOO!" Mary hopped off her seat, needing Gwen to hold her up from behind. "Anna's walking the night!"

"I think she means you're a street walker." Gwen translated, steering Mary toward the door.

"I think she's completely skunked." Anna held the door open and stuck her arm out for a passing cab. "But she did warn us."

"That's why we didn't let her bring a wallet."

"Quite right." Anna opened the door for Gwen. "Remind me never to get married."

Gwen put Mary's arm over her shoulder and they climbed into the cab. "It's just a bachelorette weekend. No harm, no foul right."

"Except we're on orders to make sure she doesn't end up coming back with a VD or something equally ghastly." Anna took the front seat, "Red light district."

The man raised his eyebrows and Anna shook her head, "It's a dare."

They drove to the area and Anna paid for the cab before helping Mary out of the seat. They held her between the two of them and started walking down the road. But when Mary lurched they both held her hair back as she vomited into the grate on the side of the road.

"Okay," Anna soothed, rubbing over Mary's back as Gwen shot her a look. "I think we need to get you back to the hotel now."

"No," Mary coughed and Gwen dug a small water bottle from her bag to hand over so Mary could swish and spit. "You've got to complete the dare. That's the game."

"Or what, some demon'll kill me?" Anna snorted, "I'm not into bad horror films."

"You did promise," Gwen shrugged, "And it's just a block. Take a picture at the end with your phone and then catch a cab back to the hotel."

"And you'll be able to manage her?" Anna and Gwen both stepped back as Mary started vomiting again. "I knew we should've taken her to Barcelona instead."

"She'd get this drunk either way." Gwen lowered her voice, "Though she's a lot drunker than I thought she'd get for someone who keeps saying she's excited to get married."

"She'll say it's just nerves." Anna looked around, "But it's because she hasn't told Matthew about Kemal."

"That was years ago."

"They were still dating." Anna shrugged, "It's none of my business but I think this is more about gilt than anything else."

"When I get her back should I take her phone or something?"

"Maybe if she drunk dials Matthew and tells me the truth she'll feel better." They both turned at the sound of Mary retching again. "Though we're going to need a lot of water and a bucket of aspirin."

"Get it when you've finished your walk of shame and I'll get her into a shower." Gwen sighed, "She smelled like a brewery."

"I think we all do." Anna waved down a cab, "Get her in there and I'll finish the dare before I get her water."

"Alright." Gwen wrangled Mary into the cab, covering her face in her hands as Mary leaned out the other window to vomit again. "Sooner rather than later I think."

"Best get on before he charges you're a fortune to clean the side of his cab."

Anna watched them go and blew out a puff of air before walking the street. She posed for a picture at the end, snapping it quickly before turning to the road for a cab. As she did someone stepped in front of her and Anna jumped slightly.

"You look a little lost."

"I'm fine, thanks." Anna tried to get past him but he did not move.

"I could help you get wherever you're going."

"That's not necessary."

"I speak Thai."

"So do I." Anna went to push past him, "I'm in a hurry so please let me by."

"I think you need a little fun before I do that." He closed in and Anna stiffened but both froze when they heard someone call out to them.

"There you." The new man put a hand on Anna's shoulder, "I thought I lost you near the night market but then here you are."

"Here I am." Anna shifted her jaw as the man turned to the first.

"Thank you, for keeping her company while she got us a cab. That's nice of you."

"I was-"

"We'll be off then." The second man put his hand just below Anna's elbow, helping steer her away.

"What are you doing?" Anna hissed but the man kept his focus forward.

"Just keep moving and I promise it'll be alright."

"It was going to be alright there."

"He had a knife."

"What?" Anna went to look but the man kept her gaze forward on the road and the cab he flagged down.

"Just get into the cab and let me out few blocks from here." He climbed in after her and Anna gave the address of her hotel. He sighed and offered her his hand, "Sorry about all that. John Bates."

"Anna Smith." She took his hand, retracting quickly, "I hope this isn't some two-bit you've got going with him to catch unsuspecting tourists."

"What?"

"If you're working with that man to play good-cop, bad-cop or something-"

"No, no, absolutely not." He dug into his pocket and pulled out a wallet, "I'm a journalist."

Anna frowned at the credentials and raised her eyebrow at him, "Doing research on the red light district?"

"Well I actually just escaped being snogged by a transvestite."

"Got something against them?"

"When I'm expecting a woman and I get a man in drag I tend to be a little less than pleased." John shrugged, "Kind of kills the horse, if you know what I mean."

"I think so." Anna shifted in her seat, "And you happened to follow a transvestite into the red light district?"

"I'm doing a story about sex trafficking and I was caught unawares." John stopped, "Though I'm more curious what you were doing in the red light district."

"Last part of a game of truth or dare."

"Did you pick truth?"

"I picked dare." Anna took a breath, "I guess it's appropriate for me to thank you now, for your help."

"You're welcome. It wasn't anything I wouldn't do for anyone else about to be accosted by some drunk idiot on the roadside."

"If he'd tried anything he'd be the one disappointed."

John smiled, "Would he now?"

"You're looking at a karate black belt and the boxing champion for not just my weight class for women but men too." Anna sat back, "It's what the Army does for you."

"Teaches you self-defense?"

"Gives you the confidence to break someone in half when they try anything."

"So what rank goes with the credentials and name you just handed me?"

"Major." Anna leaned back, "I'm not here in any official capacity though so we can leave that rank at the door."

"Wouldn't dream of using it." The cab pulled to a stop and Anna got out, John on her heels. "Is it too late to ask you to share a drink with me?"

"For me?" Anna shrugged, "No, but my friend's already vomited three times tonight and I need to get her the aspirin she'll need to soothe the splitting headache she'll have tomorrow and the water to keep her body actually working."

"Then can I help?" John raised a hand, "I know a good remedy for what she's probably got swirling around her gut."

"You want to help me get my friend sober?"

"The drunk ones aren't fun once they start to smell."

"Alright then," Anna opened her hands, "Lead the way."

Less than an hour later they returned to Anna's hotel, arms laden with supplies, and knocked on the door. Gwen answered it, looking harried, and only opened her mouth at John before ushering them both inside. "She's called him."

"Oh no." Anna set the case of water bottles on the table and went to the bathroom door where she could hear sobbing. "Mary? Mary it's Anna. Open the door please?"

"Go away. I've ruined everything!"

"Mary?" Anna stepped back from the door at the sound of vomiting and turned to Gwen. "How long's she been like this?"

"I'm starting to think it wasn't just that she had too much to drink."

"Which she did."

"I think it's what she ate."

Anna frowned then groaned, "That hot soup at lunch."

Gwen nodded, "But we've got water and she'll be alright by morning."

Anna's phone buzzed and she pulled it from her pocket. "Shit."

"What?" John and Gwen's voices came in unison and both turned to one another in confusion before looking at Anna again.

"It's Mary's dad." Anna cringed, "He's in Bangkok and he's coming here."

"Why?"

"Matthew called him." Anna tapped out a reply. "We need to scram. I'm not going to be here when the General gets wind that I let her get this drunk."

"Then I'll stay with her, so she doesn't die in the meantime." Gwen waved her off, "I'll send an all-clear when it's safe."

"Thanks Gwen," Anna kissed her cheek, "You're the best."

"Sister 'til the end." Gwen shooed her out, "Go!"

Anna took a few things and escaped to the hallway with John. Looking over at him Anna smiled, "I'll bet this isn't how you pictured your evening going."

"No but it's not as bad as I thought either." John opened a hand to her, "You're welcome to bunk down with me."

"You're in this hotel?"

"No, it's close by though and you can get some shut eye there while you wait." John led them down the street and into the small place he was staying. "Just don't make a sound because-"

"And who's this?" Both turned as a small, Thai woman came from the back, beaded curtain swinging behind her. "You know the rules. No prostitutes here."

Anna opened her mouth to argue but John put his arm around her shoulder. "She's not a prostitute, Mrs. Meesang, this is my wife."

"Wife?" Mrs. Meesang shook her head, "No way you get someone that good."

"If I was a prostitute there's no way he could afford me." Anna countered in Thai and the woman's eyes widened. "And I came to surprise my husband so if you don't mind, we'd like to go to bed now."

Mrs. Meesang had nothing more to say as they climbed the stairs to the room John rented. He let Anna in and tried to restrain his laughter. "That was amazing."

"I'll admit, it was rather nice." Anna sat on the edge of the bed, dropping her things in the nearby chair. "First night in my life I walk the red light district, get accosted, pretend to be someone's wife, and then get accused of prostitution."

"I think we pretended you were my wife twice." John took the only other free chair, clicking on the aircon with an old remote and then wincing at the groan of the motor. "The lovely accommodations of a journalist."

"At least it's got aircon. I once spent six weeks in Myanmar, sweating my ass off in a tent in the middle of the jungle."

"It must've have done you much good." John quipped and Anna stared at him.

"How so?"

"You've still got a nice ass."

"Do I really?" Anna leaned back on her hands, "And what else is nice about me, Mr. Bates?"

"How long until the shitstorm at your hotel calms?"

Anna shrugged, "Depends on what version of Mary's father's in Thailand."

"Then," John leaned forward, "Since we're married, I thought we might enjoy the privileges of the marital bed if you're open to it."

"When in Rome…"

"We're in Bangkok."

"Then we should probably live up to the name." Anna waited for John's eyes to widen at the comment, "I'm in the military, the joke could've been worse."

"I'm sure." John knelt down in front of her, "Anything off limits?"

"I'm a bit of a traditionalist."

"Protection?"

"I'm taking something but if you've got a condom that's not from this country I don't mind extra precautions."

"I imagine your position might demand that." John reached around her to a bag and pulled out a gold wrapper, "As it happens, I agree. Better safe than sorry and British made."

"Good." Anna tipped her head forward, "Because I'd like to get started."

"Me too."

John's lips met Anna's and her hands immediately came up to cup his face as he leaned her back onto the bed. Her leg wrapped over his hip and slid the material of her thin skirt up enough for the rough denim of his jeans to brush at her inner thighs. She moaned into his mouth and pulled away.

"You've not got any VDs or anything from your research have you?"

"It's not that hands on." John kissed at her neck, "You?"

"I'm clean."

"Boyfriends I should worry about hunting me down?"

"Nope." Anna caught back a cry as his hands worked under her vest to caress her breasts through the material of her bra. "You?"

"Only an ex-wife but we've been divorced for a year and we hadn't had sex for at least three before that." John stopped, "Hope that doesn't give you the wrong impression."

"I can feel your impression through your jeans, Mr. Bates." Anna grinned, lifting her hips to grind against him. "I'm pretty sure you'll be fine."

"I hope so." John took her mouth and they worked to shift themselves up the bed.

Anna worked away enough to kick off her shoes, dropping her skirt and vest on top of them as John wrestled himself free of him polo and jeans. The moment he was exposed to her, Anna pressed him back to the bed and ran her fingers over his chest while planting her lips back on his. He gave into her, sculpting over her body as they rolled a bit until Anna turned in his arms so John could finally figure his way around the clasps of her bra.

She leaned into his hands, gasping and sighing at the feeling of fingers working over her. The back of her hand tried to muffle the shriek she made when he teased into her knickers but did nothing to stop the strangled exclamation of pleasure when John's fingers worked the fabric over her sensitive nerves.

"You're not drunk are you?" He whispered in her ear, "Because I'd hate to think I seduced someone not in control of themselves."

"I'm entirely in control of my mind, Mr. Bates." Anna bit her lip, "Maybe not of my actions but I'm sober enough."

"Me too." John worked her knickers off, kissing a trail from the rise of her ass to her shoulders. "I hope you don't mind if we continue this sooner rather than later?"

"Please go for it." Anna buried her head in the pillow when she heard the snap of his boxers hitting the floor before he pressed against her. "Hard as you can."

"I'm already that." He thrust in, holding her to him a moment as they settled.

"Move."

"Yes ma'am." John grinned against her shoulder and rocked his hips to hers, working them into a position that had Anna on her hands and knees. "Is this alright?"

"If you move faster it is."

John obeyed, rutting into her with all the speed he could manage and Anna scrunched the thin sheets in her hands when his fingers came around her hips to work her to her climax. He followed a moment later and lowered her carefully to the mattress before stepping away to dispose of the condom. Anna shifted enough to give him space on the bed while her chest tried to expand enough for her lungs to fill with air.

They finally turned to one another and Anna grinned at him. "That was probably the best sex I've ever had with my husband."

"From experience, best from my wife." John reached a hand forward, pausing, "Can I kiss you?"

"After what we just did I'd say yes." Anna waited for him to end the kiss before arranging the pillow behind her head. "When do you finish up here?"

"Day after tomorrow." John bunched his own pillow behind him. "Then it's back to Manchester for a stretch, then London, then Belfast, then wherever they send me next."

"Manchester?"

"I've got a story I'm following there."

"Intriguing." Anna took a breath, "London?"

"Work."

"Belfast?"

"Holiday," John shrugged, "Visiting my mother."

"Lucky her." Anna sighed, "It's another day or so here then back to hospital."

"Hospital?"

"Harrogate." Anna adjusted on the sheets, "I run the ward at the military hospital there."

"Good on you."

"Thank you." Anna smiled, then her face fell a bit, "I hope you'll have time to come and visit, since you'll be in Manchester."

"I hope so." John took a breath, "Though I hope it's not too forward to suggest we could see each other a bit more while we're here."

"I'd like that." She grinned, "Make sure you won't forget about me before you go so far away."

He shook his head, "Not possible."

"And you're not worried that I'll forget about you?"

"Never."

Anna laughed, "You're very sure of yourself, Mr. Bates."

"Of course I am." John took her hand and held it over his heart, "Because I know that distance is just a test to see how far love can travel."

"Writer."

"Cynic." John kissed her hand and released it, "I do hope you won't miss me too hard. I can't have you following me around the globe begging for affection."

"I've not got time for that." Anna tilted onto her side, using her hand to hold her head, "But I could email you."

"I'd like that." John let out a breath, "I hope there's a chance for a round two later."

"Definitely."


	3. Legends of the Autumn

Bangkok, Thailand- One Year Ago

Anna opened her eyes and smiled at the arm wrapped over her stomach. She shifted to see John's head halfway buried in his pillow. Tracing a line down his nose had him snorting himself awake.

"Good morning."

"Morning." He smiled at her, "What'll your friend think since you spent another night here?"

"Whatever they think, they'll have to keep it to themselves." Anna kissed him, "They've done the same, if not worse, and we don't want to get into those confrontations."

"Best not." John agreed. "How's Mary doing?"

"She's still wrecked but we'll be leaving this afternoon and she and Matthew'll talk it out."

John grinned, "I hope you'll still get to wear a terrible bridesmaid's dress."

"You're terrible." Anna whipped him with the thin pillow. "And I probably will. The truth about what happened between Mary and Kemal Pamuk boils down to a drunken assault on his part that she never reported because she thought it was her fault."

"And she feels bad for that?"

"Rape culture's a real thing. It taught her it was her fault."

"Men are pigs."

"Says the man."

John propped his head on one hand, "You don't think I'm a pig?"

"I couldn't ever think that about you."

"What if you look back and think this was a bad decision?"

"Since I was completely sober the two nights I spent with you, Mr. Bates," Anna kissed at his cheek over her shoulder, "I don't really believe that'll be a worry for us."

"I hope not." John kissed her before burying his face between her neck and shoulder. "You're going back to England this afternoon."

"You're going back soon too."

"But I'll only be in London a week before I've got to cover some kind of civil war near Nicaragua."

"Ever the traveler."

"It's the glamor of the life I lead. Endless nights in hotels, tents, and the hard ground with only a few days actually spent in my own bed."

"Poor you," Anna teased, squirming away from his fingers trying to tickle her under the sheet. "You'll make too much noise and Mrs. Meesang'll accuse me of being a prostitute again."

"I could never afford you, as you were so kind to tell her, and we both know I couldn't ever have picked you off a street or even out of a catalogue." John kissed behind her ear, "And remember, she thinks you're my wife."

"That's just as big a lie."

"She doesn't have to know and I don't plan on telling her."

"I wouldn't have thought so." Anna shifted back against John's chest, bringing the hand around her waist up between her breasts while interlacing their fingers. "Do you ever wish we weren't pretending to be man and wife?"

"Like we didn't have to keep up appearances?"

"More like… we might actually one day be married?"

"After only two days?"

"It's silly-" Anna tried to shake her head but John stopped her, leaning over enough to meet her gaze with her head turned toward him.

"I've thought about it."

"Really?"

"Of course I have." John smiled at her, "What kind of idiot would I have to be to not think about what a future with one of the most attractive, bravest, and skilled individuals I've ever met would be like."

"That's fair." Anna bit her lip, "Does that mean you thought the same thing about Robert Crawley?"

John attacked her with tickles again and Anna fought him off. He landed back behind her, "I knew I shouldn't have told you about that time he was drunk and kissed me full on the mouth."

"In some countries you can do that you know?"

"I don't want to do it in any country." John ran a finger over her back, "But you know we'd both regret it if we found a tiny roadside chapel and eloped."

"It's true." Anna sighed, "We wouldn't even get a honeymoon."

"What if this was our early honeymoon?"

Anna laughed into her pillow before turning to face him, "Can you imagine telling people that story. 'Oh yeah, we honeymooned in Thailand but because our budgets were as tight as our schedules John was working on trying to break into the red light district and I was attending a bachelorette party'." Anna shook her head, "I don't think I want that to be the story we tell people."

"What story do you want to tell?"

"Of how we got to know one another."

"Do you want to have R-rated conversations with co-workers and at family functions?"

"I didn't mean give them all those details." Anna rested her head on her hand to mirror him. "I meant how we're going to get to know one another."

"What's your plan?"

"As far as I know, most of this world can be accessed by someone with an Internet connection so we can email back and forth. When we're in the same country we'll call or meet up, if we can, but we'll be flexible. We've both got demanding jobs and claims on our time so if there are drops we'll have to be forgiving."

"What if that's not enough?"

"It'll be enough for now." Anna put a hand to his cheek, memorizing the feel of the skin there with her fingers. "We've got a lot more to learn about one another than how good we are in bed."

"We're pretty good there."

"According to all the neighbors yelling in Thai about the noise I'd think so." Anna laughed with John, "But I'm serious. One day this kind of thing runs out and we need to know if we've got the conversation that's as stimulating as the sex."

"You afraid it won't be?"

"I want to know." Anna took a deep breath, "So?"

"I'll say this…" John took her hand off his face, kissing it before returning it to her. "I want to know everything there is to know about you, Anna May Smith."

"On the condition you don't refer to me by any pet names or use my middle name."

"Why no pet names?"

"Because my email's not just my property. The British Government has access to them and they can read them so I don't want to have to explain the pornographic references or anything that'll be used against me in practice interrogations."

"There goes the plan for Skype calling you."

"Were you planning technologically advanced phone sex when we could be in countries where the image'll freeze?"

"It seemed worth the risk." Anna kissed him and then squealed when John turned her back over so he covered her from behind. "But I could demonstrate how I'd tell you about what I'd like to do to you now if you want."

Anna only rubbed her ass against his growing arousal. John's hand at her waist splayed and shifted up while his other arm gripped her hip to keep her close to him. "I'd start with an image of me, in all my glory."

"Naked glory?"

"Mud stained trousers and boots, scuffed shirt, and tousled hair." John whispered against her neck, kissing there while his hand massaged over her breasts and he shunted his hips in controlled motions against her. "I'd tell you all about my fantasy that involved shower sex."

"How tight's the shower?" Anna breathed, her fingers raking into John's hair when his fingers tweaked her nipple and moved to the other.

"Not tight at all. Wide, multiple jets, and glass doors that'll steam from the water and how hot you'll be when I eat you out under the stream."

"Not fair." Anna groaned, her voice hitching even higher when John's other fingers eased between her legs to slide through her dampening folds. "What if I wanted to do something?"

"What would you do Anna?" John ran his tongue in a sweep toward her jaw before retracing the path with nipping teeth.

Anna caught his mouth, sucking on his lower hip as she worked her hips toward his fingers and back to meet the rock of his hips. When she broke away the haze in her eyes had John's wrist flicking faster against her clit and kneading at her breasts. "I'd want to suck you off."

"Be my guest." She tried to turn but John kept her in place, "Not now."

"I thought it was an invitation."

"For later." Anna grinned to herself as John attempted his halfhearted reprimand in response to the heat she felt as he expanded behind her. "Right now we're imaging the future."

"Then I'd suck you off in the shower, definitely." Anna groaned, pulling at his hair, "Stop teasing now John. That's for later."

"Okay." John sucked hard at her pulse while driving his fingers deep inside her. "Then after that shower I'd want to spread you over a bed, tie you down, close my eyes, and learn your body with my tongue."

"I thought the blindfold went to the submissive in that situation."

"I'm the submissive."

"Perfect." Anna ground out, "I'd want to use one of your neckties later and tie you to the bed so I could have my way with you all night."

"You might need more than one," John drew her to the edge, taunting at the edge of her climax.

"Damn it just finish!" Anna sobbed against him, digging her nails into the back of his neck as John finally dragged his thumb over her clit to send her over the edge.

She barely had time to breathe before he slotted his leg between hers to pull one backward over his hip. With a shift and a half-turn she was on his lap, his feet on the floor, and her ass rested right on his erection. The steady shift of the muscles of his legs under her slid him through her weeping folds.

Anna used her other hand, the one not keeping a death grip on his neck, to hold her position steady on his legs until John ran his hands to hold her hips. They shifted enough for Anna to turn over her shoulder to see him and in that break of a moment they kissed. The snap of a moment passed and the next thing she fathomed was John thrusting into her.

He kept a tight hold on her hip with one hand while the other glided over her stomach to keep her close to his chest. Her head fell back to his shoulder, panting to bring air into her lungs as John drove forward with his feet on the floor as leverage. In the back of her mind she thought she could hear the bed hit the thin walls but when the hand John kept at her stomach snuck lower to play at her clit again she could not care less.

Tumbling over the edge again, she cried out to deafen herself and only leave her body to feel John finish. The grip they kept on one another would surely leave bruises but those, unlike the possibly pornographic or suggestive emails, she would bear as badges of honor. Or... at least she would have a good story to tell about them.

"So," John's muffled voice at her shoulder finally moved Anna to notice real life again, "About those ties."

She swatted at him and then took his face in her hands to kiss him.

They did not stay long at his hotel, closing out his room and returning to hers for her things. Gwen left a message saying she and Mary would meet her in the lobby when she was ready. They managed, between the four of them, to get a car to the airport and while they loitered around outside John drew Anna to the side.

Pressing a card into her hand he kissed her cheek. "For those emails."

Anna peeked at it, smiling. "Trusting me to return this with my email?"

"You don't even have to write anything for the first one. Just put a link to your favorite version of 'One Night in Bangkok' and I'll know it's you."

"I'm not old enough for that song."

"Everyone's old enough for that song."

"I know." Anna glanced over her shoulder and then sighed, "My friends need me I guess."

"I understand their predicament." John kissed her cheek, "And if this doesn't work out, know that I've enjoyed knowing as much of you as I do at this moment."

"I'll enjoy getting to know more of you, John." Anna pulled away, waving the card at him. "And this won't be in vain, I'll have you know that now."

"I hope not." He waved her off. "Go and save the world."

"You too!" She shouted back, running in to join her friends, tucking the card safely into her pocket. When she looked up both of them wore their own versions of a judgmental smirk. "Don't start."

"We wouldn't dare." Gwen laughed, linking her arm through Anna's. "I hope this one lasts. He seems like a good man."

"Yes he does."

* * *

Berlin, Germany – 1938

John rubbed at his eyes again before flexing his fingers over the keys of his typewriter. He managed a few clacks before a noise in the office had him looking up. Squinting in the dark he noticed a small figure coming toward him with two steaming cups and clicked his tongue against his teeth.

"I thought you left hours ago Fraulein Schmidt."

"Like you should have Herr Bates?" She set the cup near him. "Your newspaper will be the most popular back home now that you've given them three times the material of any other correspondent in this office."

"I'm one of the only ones left these days." John took the cup and blew steam away before sipping at it. "You heard that they expelled that reporter from _The Times_ last week didn't you?"

"I did." She sipped her own cup. "I also know that your Lord Rothermere seems to think rather highly of our Chancellor."

" _Daily Mail_ 's never been one of my favorite publications." John set the cup to the side, typing furiously for a few lines before breaking again. "Any more of my mail come in with tampering?"

"All of it has, Mr. Bates."

"Right." John sat back, leaning his seat back, "All of it?"

"All of it." Anna nodded, "They're not taking any chances."

"Then it's a good thing they don't understand the finer nuances of the English language." John shifted his chair to look Anna straight on. "Did you know Frederick Voigt when he was here?"

"I've known them all." Anna placed her cup gently to the side and ticked off on her fingers, "I knew the Berlin Bureau Chief of _Chicago Times_ when they expelled him in '33. Then Noel Panter the same year."

"The one from the _Daily Telegraph_ that they imprisioned before they booted him?"

She nodded, "The very same. Then there was Philip Pembroke Staples the next year. He wrote from the _Daily Express_."

"Did the Gestapo really arrest him?"

"Yes. But they didn't have reason to hold him and made him leave instead." Anna picked up her cup again, bringing it almost to her lips before stopping to speak again. "You know, only your newspaper has ever been reliable in its reporting of what's really going on here."

"Voigt's articles about the concentration camps are why I got sent here." John took a breath, "He couldn't reconcile what he'd seen."

"They didn't want him too." Anna sighed, taking a sip of her cup. "Then there's John Segrue, from the _News Chronicle_ who hasn't been here since '33 but made his way to Austria."

"Is he still there?"

"From what I can tell, yes. But I suspect they'll find a way to rid themselves of him again."

"What a life we lead eh?" John smiled, finishing his tea. "We come here to allow the truth and find ourselves in some kind of horrible, gothic novel of oppression and silence."

"You're the ones writing history now." Anna finished her tea as well, taking his cup and saucer in her free hand. "I just wonder if history'll remember the worst truth of them all."

"What's that?"

"That the first country Herr Hitler invaded was his own." Anna smiled at him, "Try and sleep tonight Herr Bates. I very much doubt you'll find yourself at your best tomorrow if you don't leave now."

"And what about you?" John tapped his fingers over the keys, speeding down the line as swiftly as his fingers could depress the stiff keys.

"I'll leave when you do."

"I'm not afraid of the dark Fraulein Schmidt."

"Perhaps I am." She winked, walking away. "Just hurry please."

John finished his typing, removing the paper from the machine and resting it on top of the others on his desk with a paperweight to hold them steady, and grabbed his jacket off the back of his chair. Working his arms through it he found Anna by the front door, tapping a pen against her teeth before striking out something and writing in miniscule handwriting in the margins of the paper before her. Taking her coat from the rack that only held his now, John extended it to her.

"Shall we?"

"Ah," Anna capped her pen and blew on the paper a moment. "Thank you."

"Let me help you."

"That's kind of you." She started waving it while slipping her arm through the first sleeve John offered her and then switched hands to try and dry the ink before she had to do up her buttons. "I need to speak to the staff about the spirit of translation over the letter of translation."

"They say that's best done in concert between native speakers of both languages." John placed his hat on his head and got his own coat over his shoulders as Anna tucked the papers away into her bag. "Perhaps you need someone else on your staff who speaks English as a native but also fluent German."

"Unfortunately the worsening conditions are making that almost impossible."

"Because of the threat of war?"

"It tends to drive people away." Anna joined John on the street and both shivered, burying their hands in their coats. "No one wants to come where their letters will get read, someone else will hear their phone calls, and intercept their telegrams."

"That's why we've stopped attaching our names to things." John raised his collar and tried to position himself to block Anna from the brisk wind. "None of us want the repercussions that'll cause."

"Goring's not the grandest supporter of reporters." Anna took a deep breath, "Though I wouldn't mind a visit to The Taverne."

"It's late."

"Not so late that we'd miss a night to investigate the health of our fellow reporters."

John smiled, "I guess not. I'm in the mood for Italian food."

They entered the restaurant as red tinged their noses and John helped Anna out of her coat again when they found a small table. He offered to let her stay, warming by the fire to get warmth back into her chilled bones, and spoke to a few of their friends there. By the time he returned to the table he knew he had not hid the grave expression on his face when he noted Anna's eyes widen.

"What's happened?"

"Remember how you told me Segrue was in Austria?"

"Yes." Anna quivering hand raised toward her mouth, "What's happened to him?"

"They expelled him from Austria and all the evidence anyone can find is that they sent him to a concentration camp."

"No," Anna mourned, "They haven't."

"There's no official news but it's a likely consignment." John covered her other hand, "It's alright, Anna."

"No, it's not.' She sniffed, raising her glass and nodded for John to join her. "To John Segrue, one of the brave and one of the martyrs."

"To Segrue." John clinked his glass against hers. "How well did you know him? Did you translate for him?"

"No," Anna shook her head, "I knew him in the way we all know one another in this journalist fraternity. We'd see one another at functions, we'd share stories and details, and then he'd invite me to parties he threw on the off occasion he had a mark to his name."

"We're not the most glamorous of people are we?" John chewed the inside of his cheek. "We're the defenders of the present and preservers for the past and what has it bought us but pain and sorrow?"

"If not us then who?"

"I'm not sure." John took her hand, "Thank you for waiting for me."

"It's my pleasure." Anna covered his hand with her other one. "I like spending time with you, in whatever capacity I can."

"Even though I'm up at all hours, I sometimes wear the same shirt two days in a row, or I get so focused on my work I forget you're there."

"You don't forget."

"I do. Often, it seems."

"You get absorbed, there's a difference."

"What's the difference?"

Anna smiled, "You twitch when I brush my fingers at your neck. You acknowledge the cups of tea. You thank me for translations and edits. You share your thoughts with me and allow me to help you find solutions. When you go out for a story you invite me along. If anything I feel more included in your life than I ever have in anyone else's life."

"Do you like it?"

"If circumstances were different, Herr Bates, and the Weimar Republic hadn't fallen as it did, I wanted to be a reporter."

"Why not now?"

Anna raised an eyebrow, "In this environment I don't think I'd survive."

"Because of the dangers of possible war?"

"Because my people are already at war." Anna's voice lowered, her fingers slipping over one another. "Most of my Jewish friends and neighbors are gone. Anyone who's not a German in my neighborhood already fled or has been snatched up and loaded into a truck to drive somewhere far from here and likely never to return. And when I walk home at night…."

John frowned, "What happens when you walk home at night?"

"There's a Gestapo agent I met rather by accident at the train station. We exchanged a few friendly words in the few times we ere taking the train in the same direction and now I notice it's the only train he'll take."

"He's following you?" John spluttered, "What's he think you are?"

"It's more what he thinks of me, Herr Bates."

"He likes you?"

"Don't sound so surprised."

John swallowed and hurried to correct, "It's not that I don't think he'd have great reason to think highly of you. There are many qualities about you that I find attractive and about which I could shower and heap praise. It's just-"

"I understand." Anna laughed a little, "I know what you're trying to say and I'm very grateful you think that way."

"Shouldn't I?"

"I'd hope so." Anna ducked her head, flashing a grin at John. "Since I feel the same way."

"Then," John cleared his throat, "Might we refer to one another by our first names, since I think we're moving from friends to something a bit more?"

"How much more… John?"

"I'd like to court you, Anna." John waited, "Am I out of bounds?"

"Not at all." Anna's smile almost split her face in half. "I'm delighted to accept your offer."

"Good." John turned to the waiter, "Then let's eat to celebrate."

"Excellent plan."


	4. His Woman in Gold

Kandahar, Afghanistan – Present

Anna bent over the body, narrowing her eyes. "Nurse Crawley, I need suction. Nurse Sybil, please adjust that light over my right shoulder. I need to get a good view of this."

They obeyed immediately and Anna threaded the needle through the muscle to suture the wound. Within a few minutes she stopped the bleed and checked the heart monitor. Nodding she removed her instruments and turned to Sybil. "Sow her up please and have them prep her for the recovery ward."

"Yes Doctor Smith."

Anna stepped back, pushing through the doors with her back, and removing her mask after she dropped her bloody gloves into the biohazard bag. The gown almost caught on her arms but she shoved it off, kicking at the container when she threw the materials inside it. Another kick and the whole thing almost tumbled to the floor.

A hand caught it and Anna sighed, "Thank you Gwen."

"Are you alright ma'am?"

"I'm…" Anna waved her hand at the door to the surgery. "It was just a hard one for me."

"You've been going for almost thirty-six hours already ma'am." Gwen put a hand on her shoulder. "And the middle of that was an eighteen hour emergency surgery."

"I'll get sleep after the post-op. I need to get this one put to bed before I can go there myself." Anna leaned back on the sink, pressing the bone of her thumb into the bridge of her nose to focus the buzzing pain in her head. "It'll all be alright."

"Ma'am-"

"Gwen can you please call me 'Anna' since we're in the middle of this litter box and no one's around?"

Gwen smiled, taking the spot next to her, "I think I could manage that."

"Good." Anna sighed, "What brings you here?"

"Just wanted to see how you were. Colonel Crawley's been asking for status updates about you and the article the journalist is writing. I told him that you'd been getting on like a house on fire and he hand nothing to worry about." Gwen lowered her voice, "I didn't mention how we uh… know him."

"Thank you." Anna snorted, "I think telling Colonel Crawley the details of that would probably give him enough stress to send his remaining grey hairs white."

"Especially if you went into any details." Gwen and Anna chortled together for a few minutes before Gwen found the breath to speak. "But I'm actually here about this surgery."

"And all the others I've been covering while Doctor Clarkson's in Germany?" Anna stood, pushing herself off the sink. "It's my time."

"Colonel Crawley's not worried about your work. He just wants to know the surgeries you're doing and on whom."

"Mostly locals with broken bones. A few with some burns and one was a pretty brutal birth defect but we managed it rather well."

"And this one?" Gwen snuck a peek through the window, "That doesn't look like any of the others."

"Because it's not." Anna rubbed at one of her arms. "She's a different circumstance."

"What?"

"She's…" Anna shook her head, "She was raped and she couldn't tell her father."

"What happened?"

Anna shrugged, "Our interpreter's a man and she won't talk to them. The woman who brought her in, her friend, had to give us the motions to tell us what happened and Sybil and Nurse Crawley managed to translate the rest between the two of them." She pushed back her hair, realizing she had layers of sweat coating over her body like hours on a sundial. "I was fixing some internal damage and making sure she's not carrying around anything unwanted."

"You give her the day-after?"

"It wasn't the day after but we gave her what we could and I told her to come back for a check up if she missed her next period." Anna shuddered, "It's against my principles to even advocate for what I'd be willing to do for her but…"

"It's the climate. If you don't do it then she'll get kicked out of her house and she'll be forced to the street."

'If they don't stone her first." Anna led the way to her office, "The worst part is that Nurse Crawley says this one's not the first."

"There's a serial rapist out there?"

"We don't know because none of the women'll say." Anna almost collapsed into her desk chair. "They're all terrified and ashamed. The most we get out of them is that a white man did it but that's seventy percent of the men here."

"Did the others have something?"

"Some of them showed signs of syphilis." Anna waved a hand, "I treated them and started looking through our records but I couldn't find a single soldier here who's been treated for it."

"What if they've got the latent kind?" Gwen frowned, "You can get that right?"

Anna nodded, "It's possible."

"I could request the medical records for those currently stationed here."

"Not without the right authority and if we take this to Colonel Crawley he'll have to investigate and then John'll have to add it to his report."

"I can't see _Serial Rapist at Large in British Army_ being the headline the Colonel was hoping for when he brought you in to act as the touchstone here."

"I don't think so either." Anna looked up as the doors opened and the Nurses joined them. "Thank you Gwen. If you could find me some food and then make sure'll be a shower waiting in twenty minutes I could use a nice hot one."

"I could get you ten minutes if I swing it."

"Perfect." Anna returned Gwen's salute and then motioned Nurse Sybil and Nurse Crawley to their seats. "Alright, let's get started."

The post-op was wrapping up as Anna noticed John outside her door. He pointed at himself and she nodded while holding up a finger to get him to wait. She wrapped the meeting with the necessary details for their next surgeries and dismissed them to let John into the room.

"Aren't you a sight for sore eyes." He went to sit in a chair but saw she did not sit. "Is this a bad time?"

"No, I'm just on my way to food and shower and then a bed for as long as I could manage it."

"I could offer you mine."

Anna snorted, "I'd love to share your cot, Mr. Bates, and maybe break it with you, but I've barely got the energy to stand."

"Then I'll be quick." John kept pace with her, "I wanted to tell you the good news."

"What news?"

"I've got it." He held a letter before her with two hands and she had to blink furiously to get her eyes to focus on the script. "It's permission to get into the deep archives in Berlin."

"You found them then?" Anna brightened, "You found your war correspondent?"

"I'm about to, I hope, find out what happened to him during the war and see where he went." John bit at his lip, "I don't know if I can ask this-"

"What?"

"I want you to come with me." John hurried to hold up a hand, "It's as much your story as mine at this point. You've been the one helping me research it and giving me the contacts you have in Berlin. This is all thanks to you and I want you to be there when I crack the next step of this."

Anna sighed, putting a hand on his arm. "I'd love to go with you but they're swamped here as it is and with all the surgeries in the next few days-"

"What about the new doctor?"

Anna narrowed her eyes, "What new doctor?"

"Robert was telling me yesterday that they're bringing in another surgeon. Some Irish bloke serving…" John stopped talking, "He hadn't told you."

"No, Colonel Crawley didn't tell me." Anna ground her teeth, "Three months I've been here and not a word."

"Maybe he meant it as a surprise?"

"I hope he did because if not I'm requesting immediate reassignment back to Harrogate." Anna closed her eyes, "I'm sorry, I'm exhausted and not speaking respectfully."

"I'm not military." John reminded her, "And I've already delayed you long enough. Let me know if you can come and I'll plan our get away."

"You do that." He went to leave but Anna called out, "I'm hoping you can help me with something."

"What is it?"

Anna looked around before pulling John into a quiet alcove. "How well do you know the local people? Or the local journalists for that matter?"

"Most of the journalists I hang around are the foreign correspondents, like me, and we're always trying to scoop one another's stories so not often. As for the locals I've got a few sources of my own. Why?"

"Because what I'm about to tell you violates my oath as a doctor and would mortify Colonel Crawley if he knew I trusted you with this information before I told him about it."

"You've got my word I'd take it to the grave before I said a word to anyone." John folded his arms over his chest, "What could be so serious?"

"I had a woman in today getting surgery for serious vaginal tearing that caused some serious internal bleeding." Anna rubbed her arms. "I worried she might've been incontinent but we fixed the problem and it's not going to be as big a problem as I thought. Or I hope it's not."

"When you use the words 'vaginal tearing' and 'internal bleeding' in the same sentence as 'incontinence' I don't get the best of pictures." John shivered, "Was she raped?"

"Most definitely." Anna moved her jaw, "And whoever did it had syphilis."

"Did you cure it?"

"I got that part under control and if she doesn't get her period in a month I'll take care of that too." Anna took a deep breath, "The worst part is, and she won't confirm this, I think it was one of our men."

"How do you know?"

"Because apparently she's not been the first to come in to us in such a state. Most get treated by the nurses since all the doctors are men but all they'll say, over their shame and their terror, is that a white man did it."

"No other descriptors?"

"I've got the feeling he's not overly well endowed."

"Because he raped them?"

"Because of what he used to do it." Anna held up a hand, "I'd rather not go into the details if you're ever forced to print this but let's just say you can't cause incontinence with penile penetration and the sperm spread wasn't high enough. He's not packing much between his legs."

"So we've got an underendowed white man who's also got latent syphilis?" John puffed out his cheeks with the air in them. "I can't say those are the topics I hear in the bars."

"I don't know how else to trace him since I'm not treating anyone for syphilis and there's not been anyone in the records here that indicate anyone with those symptoms either." Anna threw up her hands, "I'm at a loss."

"But you think I'd have a clue?"

"I was hoping you would. I don't get off base very often and when I do it's to the other hospitals. I don't have any experience tracking anyone down or know how to find them in a foreign theater."

"If you ever get him in your theater I want you to cut his balls off." John rubbed a hand through his hair, his dark shirt sticking to his chest with the heat. "I know a few people, local women who sell me their homemade goods, I could convince to talk to you."

"They wont' to you?"

"No." John snorted as he shook his head, "First of all I'm a man. Then there's the fact I'm not related to them so anyone would assume it's adultery. And lastly, I'm white."

"All the things this man's done." Anna growled, "Men like this are the reason no one trusts the uniform, men, or foreigners."

"I repeat, find a reason to cut his balls off." John put a hand on her shoulder, "You get your food, shower, and sleep and I'll see what I can find."

"And when I get up it's straight to Colonel Crawley about leave. I've earned a week away from this." Anna put her hand over John's. "I wish I could kiss you right now."

"Don't get me too excited." John winked at her. "I'll tell you what I find."

"I'll be waiting."

* * *

Berlin, 1938

John paced at the bottom of the narrow stairs of her building, holding his coat over his arms and frowning as he looked through the panels of the door to see the swirling snow outside. He shivered, almost on instinct, and turned back to the stairs. That was when he jaw dropped.

Descending, like a vision, was Anna. Swathed in a golden dress that rippled over the floor, she met him at the bottom of the stairs. She held her coat out to him and john hurried to help her into it, risking a waft of the fragrance she applied with care and consideration.

"You look a little dumbfounded, Mr. Bates." She mocked putting a hand out to push up his jaw. "Is there something on my face?"

"It's all to do with how wonderful you look." John stepped back, pulling at his coat with the ragged tugs of someone who feels undeniably shabby in comparison with the person next to them. "I'm in awe of you."

"Well, they said the Fuhrer was to be there tonight and one wouldn't want to disappoint the man trying to turn his country to war, now would they." Anna pointed toward the door and slipped her arm through the crook of John's, "And it's snowing. That's always a good sign."

"Is it?"

"It's Christmas, Mr. Bates." She grinned at him, "One should always have snow on Christmas."

"It's cold."

"Snow's always cold. It means you've an excuse to bundle up closely afterward."

"I guess that depends." John put his hand on the door, looking at her. "Will there be a time for us to bundle together afterward?"

"Good things come to those who wait, Mr. Bates."

They walked the pavement together, wending their way as merrily as two can when the air holds breath like a captured prize, and reached the corner where John held out his hand for one of the passing cabs. As it stopped a man joined them and John faced him at the clutching sensation Anna's gloved fingers made in the arm of his coat. The man, dressed in the dark, black uniform of the SS with the blazing red armband clicked his heels together with a snap and extended his arm straight out from his body to shout, "Heil Hitler."

The driver snapped the salute from the driver's side and Anna managed a weak salute of her own, mumbling the words, but John only nodded at him. "As you wish mate."

"I'm sorry," The man's heavily accented English rung true of the memorized phrases from school and continued classroom instruction only rolled out now for special use. "I didn't know we had a foreigner in our midst."

"Journalist, actually." John shrugged, "Perhaps you've read a few of my translated articles. I did a devilishly good job on a restaurant review for a place, other side of town, I could recommend to a gentleman like yourself. Quiet, French, and with the best pudding I've had in three countries."

The officer frowned and turned to the cabbie. The cabbie could only shake his head in confusion and force the officer's attention to Anna. She translated quickly and then shrank back slightly.

"Ah, you speak much more quickly than they did to me when I was in school. I must be more prepared for such things."

"I'm sorry," John cleared his throat and made a show of attempting to speak in German.

Before he managed a sentence the other man stopped him. "Where are you going tonight?"

"Journalists' Ball. It's tradition to celebrate the coming of our Lord with a gathering." John waited for Anna's translation, watching the officer. "It's a pretty event where we get to put on our nicest togs and black tie instead of shirts and ties."

"And these 'togs'," The officer frowned at the odd word Anna chose to leave in its slang. "Are they appropriate?"

"You tell me." John opened his coat, making a show of modeling his tuxedo, "Think I can cut a rug in this?"

The officer laughed and pointing to their cab, "I'm freezing out you and your date and whatever rug you intend to cut tonight. Be on your way."

"Thank you." John ushered Anna into the cab and waved at the officer as the cab driver spun them in the snow to drive away. He leaned forward, speaking German to give the cab driver the directions he needed, and then sat back next to Anna. Taking her had with a furrowed brow he kissed her fingers, "Are you alright?"

"That's the officer who's followed me."

"Does he know where you live?" John craned back over his shoulder but the officer was gone. "We were at least a block from your flat."

"He's never followed me that far but the fact he was so close…" Anna shivered and John pulled her closer. "I'm scared, John. The way he stared at you… like he wanted to cut you into pieces."

"It's why I played the fool, Anna." John soothed, "I'm sorry I forced you to translate."

"It threw him off." Anna nodded, "You heard what he said to me."

"He called me an idiot and asked why you bothered with me." John smiled, pushing a strand of her blonde hair from her eyes. "It's going to be alright Anna. At least for now he's deferred."

"I don't think he'll stop John." Anna kept her gaze forward, her use of English keeping him to respond in kind so as to leave their driver ignorant of their words.

"Stop coming after you?" John shifted his jaw from side to side. "Think he'll come to the ball?"

"He wouldn't shut it down, not if the Fuhrer's coming, and even if he attends he can't…"Anna took a shuddering breath, "I just can't bear the thought of him waiting for me. It's only gotten worse since I first told you about it."

"What do you want me to do?" John gently guided her face toward his so their eyes met. "What do you need from me, Anna?"

"Just… just don't leave my side."

"Never." He kissed her gloved hand again. "Now we need to cheer up or Robert'll think something's happened to us."

They arrived at the rented hall and John escorted Anna from the cab to join the others leaving their cars dressed in their top hats and finery. If one studied them carefully they could see the frays on the tuxedos brought from mothballs or the not quite shiny veneer of a few of the hats. It was the exultation of a bygone age about to be fully eclipsed by the tensions rising in the nation. John almost put his finger out to feel the pulse of the tension that floated over the air as the crowd entered the building.

John helped Anna from her coat and removed his own to hand to the attendant. Pocketing the ticket, John offered Anna his arm again and they joined the throng moving into the hall proper. There the lights, bedecked with green garlands and shining white decorations to look just like snow, twinkled merrily. John smiled and turned to Anna.

"This is the kind of white Christmas I like."

Before she could respond a hand clapped down on John's shoulder and his free hand met the crushing hold of Robert Crawley. "I thought you'd never make it."

"It's a bit of snow." John shrugged and turned to give Anna her turn. "I'm sure you recognize Ms. Schmidt, from the office."

"Dressed like a vision, to be sure." Robert kissed her gloved hand and smiled before turning to John. "Might I pull you away for a moment?"

"I do hope we're not discussing business at a party Robert." John tried to joke, taking Anna's nod of acquiescence to walk a pace away with Robert. "What is it?"

"I'm sure you're not ignorant of a few things."

"If you're talking about the other reporters-"

"It's more than that John." Robert snuck a furtive look around them. "We've had men from the Ministries all over coming to crack down on us. First it's the phrasing of this and then it's the specific notation on that. They're taking us apart line by line John and soon it'll be paragraph by paragraph."

"Why tell me?"

"Because I need to ask you something." Robert held up a hand, "You owe me nothing, John, I want to make that clear at the beginning of this."

"Why are you using the same tone I'd expect if you were about to ask me to care for your children if you died?"

"Because the office I manage here is as near and dear to me as my own children… sometimes more when they're being finicky." Robert patted at John's lapel, as if to focus his words. "I need you to take over the office and close it if necessary. Close the whole thing down and then leave yourself if it gets too difficult to keep it open."

"I'm not the kind to run away Robert."

"John, it's not like that. We crossed the Rubicon together once but in this case we can't capture Gaul and we need to return to Rome."

John snuck a look over toward Robert's wife, Cora, speaking politely with Anna. "This wouldn't have anything to do with the Levinson family being evacuated on forged passports would it?"

"I got them out as soon as I heard the rumors." Robert shook his head, "They've been breathing down her neck but since she's my wife that makes her almost a British citizen and they're not circling yet but the wolves are closing in."

"If you think it's what's best for your family then you need to go." John urged, "I can close the office and take on the responsibilities for it."

"What about when you leave?"

"They'd have to drag me from this country." John focused on Anna, a sparkling vision as she flashed him a smile. "I wouldn't leave for the world."

"They're not going to let you stay." Robert forced John's attention back to his face. "They're not kind to reporters and you know it."

"I do know it but I also know that until I'm thrown from this country or ordered back by my editor I owe it to the world to let them know what's going on here." John stood taller, "It's my duty, Robert."

"Just make sure, when the time's right, you know how to get out before it's too late." Robert sighed, "I'll get you updated on all the details after the holidays. Then Cora and I are leaving for home."

John followed Robert back to Anna and Cora. More greetings were exchanged and John took Anna's arm, leading them to their table. He pulled out Anna's chair and she turned over her shoulder to speak to him.

"What did Mr. Crawley want?"

"To make sure my leg's not acting up." John hooked the head of his cane over the chair back. "The cold can lead to unexpected aches and pains."

"I don't think that's what he said." Anna took her glass as the waiter, spurred to action by their taking their seats, filled it with cava.

"Then what do you think he said?"

"If I read his lips correctly he wants you to take over the office management while he and his wife… what is that phrase, run for the hills?"

"I think you need to stop pretending you don't speak English better than most of the Englishmen I know." John sipped his own drink and smiled at her, "And yes, they are leaving. It's too difficult with Cora's family being Jewish. They're already out and Robert needs to get Cora to safety."

"As any good husband should for his wife." Anna took a breath, "And why I need to join in Mr. Crawley's encouragement for you to leave as well."

"If you read lips then you should know that I'm not leaving." John turned to her in his chair. "I can't leave."

"I know you think you're doing something noble here but the risks you're taking just by being in this country are enormous." Anna waved a hand toward the door. "That officer found you funny tonight but what about six months from now, a year? Will he find your antics impressive and encouraging then if the whispers and murmurs of war become the shouts they inevitably will?"

"Should that time come then I'll rely on two things. First, that if war ever is declared, the British government keeps their stiff upper lip and punches back because they refuse to learn German. Second," He took her hand when she scoffed at his joke and tried to turn away, "That I'd have to be torn, literally, from your side."

"You're speaking very dramatically." Anna tried to shrug it off but John shook his head.

"I'm very serious, Anna. I intend to stay right here, with you, until the end of time." He smiled at her, kissing her hand and wishing he could kiss her lips. "I intend to try and marry you one day, Ms. Schmidt. I hope you know that."

"I think I got that impression." Anna caressed the side of his face with the back of her hand, "And if that day ever comes I'll accept."

"You will."

"I will." She pulled at his hand, "But right now I want to dance."

John followed her to the floor with a grin that took over his whole face.

And they danced as much as they could that evening. Perhaps it was the drink or the atmosphere but John pushed past his leg to keep Anna in his arms as much as possible. The stuffiness of the room added a delicious red to her cheeks and when they left to join the queue for the cabs the cold air felt like a wonderful reprieve to their faces.

They arrived at her flat, John insisting on dismissing the cab to accompany her inside. Anna tried to refuse but when John noted a shadow on the corner he hustled them into the foyer. Both paused, the giddiness of their evening replaced with a moment of trepidation, but the shadow was just a man shoveling the pavement.

Anna sighed, "I thought it was Officer Grün."

"Who?"

"The officer who confronted you in the street." Anna pulled at her fingers, scrunching the fabric of her gloves. "He insisted on introducing himself a few weeks ago and then revealed he already knew my name."

"Why did you tell me?"

"I thought it was what they all did but this wasn't like the others." Anna shook her head, "He's interested in me in a different way."

"I know what way that is." John pointed to her stairs. "Then should I accompany you up, just to be sure?"

"I'd appreciate that very much Mr. Bates."

They walked the stairs together, comfortably quiet in their own private thoughts. When they reached Anna's floor, John led the way and then stopped at the sight of the same officer, Grün, from earlier. He noticed and John and a sweep of darkness came over his eyes before replacing it with a plastered smile.

"Did you enjoy your evening to use your togs?"

"I did." John kept Anna behind his right shoulder, cane gripped a bit tighter as they stood in the hall without giving away which number was Anna's. "And your evening, was it just as nice?"

"I didn't attend a celebration like you but I found my own fun."

"Then let me wish you a Happy Christmas and a good evening." John stepped to the side to allow Officer Grün to leave but he did not move.

"Might I enquire as to why you're here with Ms. Schmidt?"

"It's the gentlemanly thing to do, escorting a lady to her door."

"Then perhaps you would allow me to be that gentleman." Grün held out a hand but John shook his head.

"I don't think that'd be appropriate since I took her out for the evening."

"Then you should know how to share her." Grün smiled, "That is what we do in our new nation. We share things."

"People are not things."

Grün narrowed his eyes, "I do believe you've misinterpreted the situation here, Mr. Bates."

"Not really." John responded in German. "All I've done is recognize that you are trying to take something that's been neither offered nor returned. You're trying to use your power and whatever connections you have to frighten and bully because you can't trust to whatever charm you don't have to help you."

"You tread a fine line don't you?" Grün stepped closer but John did not falter, using his grip on his cane to keep him in place. "You think you can stand up to me?"

"I think someone should."

"And you disrespect this uniform?"

"I don't think anything about your uniform. My concern is for the man in the uniform who needs to leave."

Grün snorted, "You think I'll leave because you asked nicely."

"I think you'll leave because you're by yourself and you're the type who needs five men behind you to feel strong. That's what bullies do."

"And what do you do, Mr. Bates?"

"I hold my own and I fight my corner." John looked the man up and down. "You're too young to remember but I fought in the trenches your last Kaiser forced men to dig through their own country. I held the line there and pushed forward to the end and I'll do the same right now because it's the right thing to do."

"You must think very highly of yourself."

"I don't think anything of myself at all." John did not flinch under Grün's unwavering gaze. "That's the difference between you and I."

"The first of many." Grün stepped the side, "Enjoy the rest of your evening. I'm sure I don't have to remind you that we're watching you."

"I hope you enjoy the view."

Officer Grün turned to Anna, "And you prefer this broken, old man to me?"

"I prefer a great many things to you." She managed, "I hope you travel to your home safely."

He turned on his heel and left the landing. John hurried Anna to her door and joined her inside, pushing the bolt himself. Helping her out of her coat, John guided Anna to the sofa and put an arm around her.

"It's alright."

"No," Anna shook her head. "He knows where I live. He knows the number of my door, and he knows..."

"He knows you don't like him." John shrugged, "I don't have much faith in your Fuhrer, if I'm being honest, but I do think there's got to be some kind of hope that he still protects women."

"No," Anna shook her head, "His doctrine is 'children, kitchen, church' and that's where I'm supposed to stay."

"I've heard that." John sighed, "Did I just make this all worse for you?"

"It's fine." Anna assured him, "You did what you thought was right and I love you for it."

They both froze, Anna immediately averting her eyes. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have-"

"You love me?" John whispered and Anna raised her head, nodding.

"I've wanted to tell you for so long and it's… I know it's not ladylike to say, Mr. Bates, but I'm not a lady and I do love you."

John put his hand on Anna's chin. "You're a lady to me and I've never known a finer one."

They stared at one another for a moment before John, swallowing hard enough to echo the sound in his ears, leaned forward. With his hand still on her chin, he guided their lips to meet. In the first moment neither moved but when Anna's hands took their positions on either side of his face it was all John could do not to immediately ravage her.

But Anna's hands proved dexterous and swift, removing her gloves and his coat before he could even fathom it. With a tug on his lapels, Anna had him standing so she could unknot his bowtie and unbutton all the layers of fabric that separated them. His own hands stuttered a moment and managed a hold on her shoulder to break their kiss.

Their chests and rose and fell, heavy breathing of the winded and wanting filling the air, as John forced another swallow. "Is this what you want?"

"With you." Anna nodded, her fingers gracing over the back of his neck as her face moved ever so slightly to have her studying John's eyes. "Do you want it?"

"With you." He leaned down, taking a slower appreciation of her lips and mouth this time.

Their pace slowed but it only stoked the ardor. Graceful, and not so graceful, paces toward her small bedroom divested John of his shoes and socks, his jacket, waistcoat, and braces. When those clattered to the floor it distracted him a moment but Anna's insistent hand on his, guiding it to run over the silky material that still covered her body, brought him back.

They entered her room, still dark, and Anna pulled John toward the bed. When the backs of her knees bumped there she stopped them. John's hands traced her figure through her dress and sought the zipper before she led him to the straps holding it on her shoulders. They fell away and even in the half-light from the dim street lamps, and what little light managed to make its way down the hall to her room, John could see her.

He knew his fingers could never be delicate enough in their trace of her skin and eventual unclasping of her brassiere. Never as nimble as her fingers undoing his cuffs and letting the links tinkle into this trouser pocket before she pushed the shirt from his shoulders. Never as elegant as the track of her lips and hands over the skin of his chest. Never as careful as the nails rasping through the hair she worked over with diligent study. And never as silkily erotic as the run of her hair over his exposed skin as her head moved to study and taste him.

But John tried.

He tried to map the bones and skin of her back. Tried to follow the flow of her muscles to give her the sensations bubbling inside him without the words to really describe it and only his hands to translate. Tried to leave a line of kisses and caresses over her neck and shoulders that would tell her everything he wanted to say but simply could not find words to communication. Tried to hold her to him, or knead at her breasts, or take her tongue in his mouth with the passion she emitted with the scantest of brushes over his skin.

Eventually his trousers and pants hit the floor and he worked her own knickers down with her stockings. They lay back, darkness as their welcome cover for what might be an awkward event for two people so enthusiastic but so out of practice, and John sought to ease the tension from his body by easing it from hers. It was all he could do and he prayed to whatever god cared to listen that it would be enough.

John started at her mouth, kissing her with all the emotion he could manage without boiling over, and used his hand at her neck to guide them. Her fingers worked furrows into his hair and her leg rose up his side to trace her foot over his body. But John would not allow her to speed up proceedings and worked his way down her chest with kisses and smoothing motions of his hands to reach her breasts.

Anna's whimpers and keening moans as her body writhed under his attentions was all he needed to continue his assault on her. He kept up the nips and sucks, kissing when she cried out and tracing with his tongue when she tried to moan through clenched teeth. The pace set a distraction for her and her honest cry of surprise when he touched her where she started weeping for him was all John needed.

Gentle strokes, brushes over her swelling but tender folds, and persistent teases at her nerves set Anna's hands clutching at his head. John maintained his pace, feeling for her to be ready as her legs relaxed and opened for him, and eventually pressed a finger to her. He gritted his teeth at the tightness and paused.

"This might hurt."

"It's… Please." She could not open her eyes, "I can't bear it."

John slid his finger inside her and returned his other hand and mouth to their former occupations. Eventually she loosened, easing and opening to him, and John brought his thumb around to work into her while applying the pressure he would need to bring her over the edge.

And he knew he never, in his life, heard a more beautiful sound than her cry when she toppled over the peak. That unhindered, breathless sob of pleasure that thrilled him to the very core as he withdrew from hers, had him almost bucking forward to thrust and plunge erratically. But John held back, he watched and waited, and when Anna's eyes finally gained enough reality to see him he brushed her sensitive center with his arousal.

"Are you ready?" She nodded and John adjusted to align them. "It'll hurt."

"You'll make the pain go away."

John kissed her as a distraction and drove forward. She broke and he could only seat himself so far into her. Anna cried out, her eyes scrunched in pain, and John withdrew to the edge.

He waited, kissing and caressing her skin, and followed Anna's cues. She lifted her hips and John slid forward again, working slowly until he could feel her legs wrapped close to his hips and their pelvises notched together. Almost as if they had been made for one another.

Anna's trembling hand drew John's lips to hers and then steered him toward her breasts with the rise of her hips again. John moved. Thrusting and driving, supplementing fast, short strokes with long, slow ones he sent Anna toward the edge again. His lips on her skin, his hands on her body, and her walls wrapping around him like an uncompromising fist had John almost delirious with sensations that attempted to rob him of focus.

For every screaming nerve in his body demanding release into the sweet, silken confines of hers John refrained until he could hear that hitch in Anna's breath. He waited for her walls to contract, demanding their due from him, and John brought a hand between them. Lifting her leg first, to try and drive himself as deeply inside her as he could, John moved his hand to her nerves. With a few determined presses in time with his last thrusts, Anna fell over the edge again.

John finished without the same finesse, his body rutting on a primal instinct until he could tumble over the edge to join her. His head fell to her shoulder and her arms, quivering with the trapped energy in her body now released and leaving her weak, held him close. With a turn John managed to get them on their sides and slowly withdrew.

She hissed and he turned to her, "Still sensitive."

"I'm sorry." He brushed his lips on her cheek. "I know, I'm sorry."

"It's alright." Anna closed her eyes and then found his in the dark, just reflected pinpricks of light. "Thank you."

"I should be saying that to you." He smiled, propping his head on his hand. "I've… that was the most beautiful think I've ever seen."

"What?"

"You, when you came." John stroked a finger through her hair to brush it back from her face. "You're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."

"I love you." She traced over his face.

"I love you too." John watched her expression, "Now that you've had your way with me, Ms. Schmidt, how do you feel?"

"Like I'm now the person I was meant to be." She moved close to him, working herself toward his side. "I've never felt more whole than when I'm with you."

"You're what makes me whole, Anna." He kissed the top of her head, reaching around them to manipulate the covers and bring them up over the two of them as they settled together in the bed. "I love you."

"I love you too."


	5. Ticket of Leave

Berlin, 1939

John blinked, smiling at the sight of Anna above him. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to wake you up." She straddled him, leaning over to kiss him while putting some of her hair over her ear. "You've got a deadline to meet."

"It's Easter."

"I know what it is." Anna rested her arms on his chest, bending her body over to kiss around his face. "And we need to go to church so I can confess my sins."

"What sins have you got to confess? You're an angel."

"I've been sleeping with a man who's not my husband for some time now." Anna bit at her lip, "It's not only against the laws of God but it's also against the impositions of the Fuhrer."

"Perhaps he instituted that rule because he's jealous he could never get someone as beautiful as you to look twice at him."

"Maybe." Anna winked and then pushed off his chest. "But we're going to church all the same."

"After," John wrapped his arms around her waist. "I intend to give you a bit more to confess about first."

"Do you now?" Anna giggled, leaning over to kiss along his jaw line.

But she gasped back as John's fingers, teasing under her nightdress, slipped under the line of her knickers. Twisting to escape him, Anna tipped forward toward John and caught herself with her hands on either side of his head. As his fingers slipped between her folds, drawing back and forth across her, he grinned and she kissed him.

Their tongues tangled with one another, John using his hand on her hip to try and push her nightdress higher so he could gain more access to her skin. Anna, on the other hand, seemed content to use her hands to hold his head steady so she could sweep his mouth. John tried to push past the moans and groans escaping from his lips so he could gain the upper hand in their teasing but Anna kept up her relentless attacks. With her teeth and tongue, she left John almost dizzy for lack of air.

Focusing the one corner of his mind he had left, John drove his middle finger into Anna. Her gasp broke their kiss and John forced her nightdress higher as he sat up to kiss over her exposed torso and breasts. Anna's finger dug into the hair at the back of his head, sliding through the strands to hold him steady, but abandoned her grip to tear her nightdress from her.

It fluttered to the floor, unnoticed, as John stroked his other fingers along her folds. Flicking with his wrist he managed to place his thumb at her bundle of nerves while guiding his other hand to her ass to hold her closer to him. She writhed against him, desperate in her scrape of nails against his shoulders and neck. When his mouth closed around one of her breasts she called out with a throaty moan.

John shifted, trying to get deeper with his fingers but they could only drive so far. He groaned against her breast and drew away in time for Anna to force his head up so she could kiss him again. Her hips bucked against him, driving toward his arousal and rubbing herself against his occupied fingers to send him higher and harder the longer she continued moving.

It was her fingers wrapped around his wrist that pulled him from her, just on the verge of her climax, and John turned to look in her eyes. She winked and used her fingers to untie his sleep trousers and force them down his legs. John lifted his hips, scissoring his legs to expose himself, and then tugged Anna closer. Slipping over the sheets she tried to settle above him but John slid under as he pulled her forward.

Anna's hand grabbed the headboard and held herself steady as John dragged her down to his mouth. Her whimpers drove John to send her higher and higher. She twisted and tried to get closer to him until her quivering muscles spasmed to finish. Anna's head hung lower, her gasping breaths giving John a smile as he twined them like a Mobius strip to place her where he needed her.

But he did not move. Just rocked gently against her, the fire in her sensitive flesh twitching and gyrating her as their eyes met. The haze in hers had John leaning forward just enough to meet his lips. No hurry was left in their movements as Anna put her hands on his shoulders, keeping the kiss going, and sank down on him.

Their foreheads met, the kiss broke, and they basked in the eternal second of first joining. John wrapped an arm around her, his hand coming down to hold her ass steady. Anna gasped, hitching up on him to send a spark of pleasure through John that had him gritting his teeth. A moment was all he gave her to flash her wicked grin before his work began.

The steady drive of his hips to snap against hers let the blood thump in his ears. Anna's lips and teeth worked over his skin, moving his head where she wanted so she could chase sensations of pleasure with her nips along his jaw or the suck of his earlobe into her mouth. John kissed the skin he could, following the line of her neck to her shoulder or back to her lips for a moment until they separated again.

Her legs shifted and she sank deeper, the guttural sound at the back of her throat dragging a groan from John. He bent his legs enough to increase his speed and risked a look at the sight of them. Even in the weak morning light he could see the slick streak she left on him as he drove as deeply into her as he could manage. John forced his head up and took Anna's lips again.

With a hand still holding her tight to him, John used his other hand to snake between them and press at her nerves. Anna keened against his lips and brought a hand to his cheek, pushing him away so she could stare at him as she came again. Her eyes rolled back into her head and John could only sacrifice a moment to a smug smile. In her flailing finish, Anna rocked against him and John grunted.

All sense drove from him when Anna pulled his ear close to her mouth and whispered, "Are you going to join me or not?"

The primal desire, at the back of his mind, took over and John pounded out his finish. In the afterward of the frenetic motions, he sagged back to stutter a finish. His fingers lost their secure hold as he lay back but Anna followed him. Her head settled on his shoulder and she breathed with him until she found the strength to slip loose.

John turned them enough to place her gently on the bed and smiled at her serene expression. "Will you confess that too?"

"I'll have to." Anna drew her finger down his nose and then lifted herself enough to see the clock on the table beside the bed. "And I'll have to get myself decent enough to go."

"You could miss it."

"Miss the day we recognize and praise the rising of our Lord?" Anna pulled her dressing gown from the floor and wrapped it over herself. "I think it's the worst day to miss."

"Aren't they all the same?"

"As a Catholic you should know that no, they're not all the same."

"I only remember," John pushed himself to sit up, "All of the masses were in Latin and my mind getting fogged with all the incense."

"You're just making excuses." Anna picked up her things, moving them to either the hamper for the clothes she needed to wash or returning the ones she wanted to wear later, and pulled out her Sunday best. "Are you coming with me?"

"Do I have to confess my sins as well?" John slid off the bed, gathering his clothes and laying a kiss at the base of Anna's neck when she turned her back to him.

"No." Anna sighed as he wrapped around her from behind. "I just wanted to show the church where I want to get married."

John stopped, "Married?"

Anna turned, stepping out of his hold. "I'd hoped… with all of our talk…"

"That's not what I meant," John waved his hands to stop her eyes from filling with tears. "It's… in England I can't get married in a church because I've been divorced."

She sighed, "I don't think that matters here."

"Why?"

"Because your wife's back in England or Ireland or somewhere not here." Anna took his hand, "If you're staying to hold the station here, I want us to do it as man and wife."

"I want that too." John kissed her forehead, "But it won't help you get out of here if things continue to escalate."

Anna frowned, "Why would that matter?"

"Because if you're my wife, I'd want to take you with me." John shook his head, "I couldn't leave and abandon you here and England's not taking non-nationals anymore."

"And?"

"I want us to be safe." John took both of her hands in his. "I've got some connections willing to help us get to Switzerland. They're willing to take anyone fleeing this mess and I think we should go there. Or Spain or Sweden. Anywhere but here."

"We can't leave. Our lives are here, John."

"What if there won't be lives to live here soon?" John waited, squeezing her hands before dropping. "Just, think about it. Tell me where you want to go and we'll go there. We'll escape together and that'll be it. Just you and I far from all of this."

Anna laughed, putting a hand to his cheek and kissing there. "You'd never be able to leave John. It's in your blood to stay where the story is and report until they toss you back."

"Not if you're in danger." John shook his head, "You're more important to me than any story. It's you that matters to me, no one else."

Anna studied his eyes before hers widened. "You're serious."

"Very." John took a breath, "I'll only propose to you, Anna Maria Schmidt, the moment I take you away from here. That's my promise."

"I'll take it." Anna kissed him, "Now, let me get on. I've got a service to attend."

John smiled to himself and hurried to gather his own clothes.

* * *

Kandahar, Present Day

Anna took a breath and pushed into the office, "Sir?"

"What is it Anna?" Colonel Crawley did not look up from his paperwork, scrawling his name on one sheet as the man at his side took it in a second to put it in a folder.

"I'm here about my request for leave." She entered the cooler office, the constant thud of the aircon in the corner worrying her with its occasional bucking belches of air and shudders. "You've seen it, yes?"

"I-" Colonel Crawley looked up, pausing before turning to the man. "Carson, I think I need a minute alone with the Major, is that's alright."

"Of course sir." Carson saluted him and then Anna. She returned it and stepped to the side so Carson could leave the office.

Taking a deep breath, Anna moved to Colonel Crawley's desk. "I don't want to sound… impertinent, sir, but I've been run ragged since I got here and I've recently learned you've brought on another doctor without informing me."

"Yes," Colonel Crawley drew the word out, worrying the pen in his fingers. "He arrived this morning. But I don't want him in the rotation until-"

"Sir," Anna interrupted, risking it. "I've already been here longer than the original agreement for my posting. As such, I'm feeling worn and weary. I'm running back-to-back surgeries for the humanitarian efforts and taking care of this base. I need the leave I requested and I need to start considering a transfer back to my posting at Harrogate."

"I thought you liked it here."

"That's a relative term." Anna managed another breath. "I understand that I was brought here for the article Mr. Bates is writing. You were hoping my lovely face and equally pleasing personality would send a better message home and I'm happy to fill in for that. But Doctor Clarkson's due back next week and that'll take the strain off your new doctor. More to the point, with a new doctor then it's my obligation to return to my post, sir."

Colonel Crawley put down his pen, studying Anna across his desk. "Am I to assume you're telling me you'll request a transfer if you're not granted leave?"

"I've been working non-stop here for six months sir. I'm entitled to leave in the interim and I need to take it for my health." Anna shrugged, "If you're taking my statements as anything more than fact then I'll leave the insinuations to you."

They waited, the stuttering coughs of the aircon the only disruption.

Finally, Colonel Crawley spoke. "Do you want to return to Harrogate?"

"Not as yet, sir." Anna pulled at the fingers of her left hand with her right. "There's a development here I believe I should see through to the end."

"Development?"

"There's reason for me to believe we've got someone causing some medical trouble." Anna winced, "Some of the local girls I've been treating are expression signs of syphilis."

"They are?" Colonel Crawley went to pull the receiver of his office phone to his ear but Anna held up a hand.

"Someone gave it to them, sir. Someone I believe is one of the soldiers on this base."

"You think one of my men did this?"

"With all due respect, sir, they're only your men for this deployment. It's not a reflection on you as much as on them and their personal lack of morality." Anna took a breath, "From what I've discovered, whoever it is doesn't have much to brag about in the size department and he's expressing a decreased sperm count. I'd hazard he's got a history of juicing."

Colonel Crawley pushed a hand through his hair. "You want leave in the middle of this crisis?"

"There's always going to be a crisis, sir." Anna met his raised eyebrow without losing her nerve. "Better take a break and then come back with the rest I need to tackle this problem."

"You think a week away will solve that problem?"

"I do sir." Anna ground her teeth a moment, "I'll be accompanying Mr. Bates on his trip to Berlin, sir."

"Excuse me?"

"Mr. Bates and I, during his shadow of me for his article, have been discussing his other work and he's invited me to see the next stage in his search."

Colonel Crawley snorted, "You mean his hopes he finds something about that couple from World War II?"

Anna frowned, "Yes sir but how do you-"

"John's been working on that story for years. Dug through my family archives for scraps when he found out my grandfather owned the office where the reporter worked before they closed it in '39."

"How fascinating."

"It's just history and digging through those records is his pointless passion." Colonel Crawley dug a paper from the stack and signed it quickly. Holding it out to her, he nodded. "You get your week. But I expect you back here with results on what you just told me before your tour ends."

"Another six months, sir." Anna took the paper, "And I'll be back on time, bright-eyed and bushy tailed."

"I do hope so." They saluted and Colonel Crawley waved toward the door, "Now make yourself scarce or I'll assume you were having me on about the leave."

"Yes sir." Anna ducked out of the office, avoiding Carson as the other man entered and held the paper up to show John. He jumped out of his seat, snatching at the paper to read it before grinning. She nodded and took it back. "We're going."

* * *

Berlin, 1939

John pushed through the crowd, growling and shoving a bit when they tried to back him into a wall. Papers and passports flailed in the air at the end of manically waving arms trying to crowd the train station. He ducked under the careless arm of a man and worked out of the crush to find Anna by the edge of the platform. She turned to him, her eyes hopeful and then falling to tears as he shrugged.

"I'm sorry. They… No one's giving the papers or passports for you to leave. I couldn't get us anywhere. It was my last hope." John glanced over his shoulder, noting the hovering presence of an officer in a dark uniform he thought might be Grün before noting the man's blonde hair. "I don't know what else to do."

"They already checked your flat and mine." Anna's hushed voice hissed at him, dragging him toward a pillar as the melee near the booths caused a few police to rush over and try to control the crowd. "They'll tear the office apart if they think you defied the order to expel you."

"They might have to physically drop me over the border."

"John," Anna chided, "You've heard what they've done to those who tried to defy them."

"And they're the noble ones."

"They might be the dead ones." Anna's voice caught, her head shaking violently, "I couldn't… I can't bear the idea that they might…"

"Anna," He soothed, taking her hands. "I won't put myself to the hazard if it might hurt you. I'd never do that. You're too important to me."

"I wish we had a way to stay together." Anna's fingers stroked over the empty spot on his finger and John sighed.

"They wouldn't even take the license from the church."

"We're still married in the eyes of God, John."

"But not in the eyes of the government and I'm worried…" John took another furtive look around them. "It's not a coincidence that Grün's been the one stalking me while I'm here. He knows Anna and I'm worried for you."

"I'll be fine." They both jumped as the loud whistle rang in their ears and a train pulled and puffed its way to the platform. "But you won't be if you don't go."

John shook his head, interlacing their fingers. "I'm not leaving you, Anna."

"If you don't go you'll be a prisoner of war, John. They'll put you in a camp or force you to swear allegiance to the regime and I know you won't do that." Anna tried to stop her sob but it cut through John's heart. "England's at war with us and you're the enemy to them."

"I'm the enemy to any tyrannical regime that would suppress freedoms and-"

"John," She stopped him, "There's nothing else for you here. You need to go."

"You're here. That's enough for me."

"If you stay you'll be killed or worse. Either way, we'll not be together."

"We could-"

"No, John," Anna shook her head. "We've not got time for schemes."

"Maybe-" John stopped, his eyes narrowing, "What do you know?"

"What?"

He did not answer. Turning on his heel and tightening his grip on her hand, John pulled Anna behind him. With his shoulder, John forced his way through the crush, with Anna dragging behind him. They found a path through the crowd to the booths or, more specifically, a man at the side.

Before the man could react, John grabbed his arm, forcing him to face them. "Fancy meeting you here Mr. Sampson."

Sampson paled, "I swear I was going to pay you back but then a Gestapo agent took my wallet and-"

"I've not got time for whatever excuse you have for me." John cut through the explanation, "You owe me a favor, Mr. Sampson, and I hope you're ready to help."

"What?"

"I need a passport, right now." John nodded at him. "I know you've got the tricks of your trade tucked away but you can make papers to give my wife here so she can get out of the country on that train."

Sampson's eyes darted to the side before he answered. "I've got none left. I gave the last ones I had to a Jewish family just-"

"Don't lie to me. You've not got the heart for that."

"I didn't say I gave it for free." Sampson pulled at his lapels, sniffing as if John insulted him with the idea of generosity. "They paid for them but the rest of my equipment's in pieces or tossed away. Think I want to end up in a ghetto or a prison when they know what I did?"

"Then find something for us."

"I've got nothing to give you." Sampson tried to get past them as the whistle blew. "I'm sorry but you need to get on that train with me to leave or you'll be trapped here."

"You need to help." John grabbed his coat but Sampson got loose.

"I've got no way to help you." He shrugged and offered a nod at Anna. "I'm sorry, ma'am, but there's no hope."

John struggled for something to say, turning to Anna, but she just squeezed his hand. "You've done all you can John."

"There's got to be something else."

"There's not." Anna pushed him toward the train. "I understand and I need you to go. I can't have you here."

"I won't go Anna." John tightened his hold on her. "I can't leave you here."

"John," Her tone brooked no argument, "I won't have you trapped in this country when you can leave and find a way to free us from out there."

"If I stay I'd be with you."

Anna sighed, "We've been over this. We both know you wouldn't and we can't risk it."

"We'll find someone to smuggle us out of here. We'll escape over a border if we have to walk. We'll-"

"John!" She interrupted him and John noted the level of insanity to his words. "You need to leave so you can find me when it's all over."

"Over?"

"Of course." Anna tried to stay strong but John felt the flutter in her fingers. "It'll resolve itself quickly, you'll see."

John could not find the words to say as the whistle blew again. Instead they hurried over the platform, stopping a door to a train carriage. The man there tried to argue but John glared him down and the man retreated.

"Here," John dug into his pocket and held out a box to Anna.

She took it, opening it and almost dropping the box in shock. John rescued it, pulling the ring loose to slide over her finger. Her delicate fingers he could not stop himself kissing.

"I know the government didn't recognize our marriage but I do and this says as much." John met her eyes. "I wanted to give it to you on bended kneed, making sure there was candlelight and soft music, and the chance I could make you happy."

"You already do." Anna kissed him fiercely, holding him to her in a crushing hug before releasing. "I couldn't be happier than I've been with you."

"Then know this is a promise." John held up her hand, making sure she focused on the ring. "It promises that I'll be back. However, whenever, whatever it takes so I can be back by your side."

"I know." Anna kissed him again, pushing him into the train as it sent a final whistle and lurched. "But if you don't leave now you won't fulfill that promise and I won't see you anywhere else but with me."

"I'll be back Anna." Their fingers pulled apart as the train moved. He raised his voice, "I love you Anna. I'll be back for you."

"I love you John. However, whatever, whenever."

"I love you!" He watched her nod as someone grabbed his coat and yanked him into the carriage so the door swung closed. "I love you forever!"

She waved, to signal she heard or just to wish him off it did not matter. Anna was all John could focus on until the train pulled too far from the station. And, for every moment until they could be back together, she was all his mind knew.


	6. Danke Schoen

Berlin, Present Day

Anna blinked herself awake, swatting at John's grinning face. "You'd sleep the whole way too if you'd been pulling the hours I have."

"No judgment." John tucked his laptop away as the flight attendant shot him a nasty glare. "I've already submitted part one of my exposé on the life and trials of doctor in Kandahar."

"Not sure it's a trial in those terms but I do hope you left my name out of your article." Anna stretched as much as she could in the seat. "I'm not having others take the mickey out of me when it gets published."

"You won't take flak for it." John grinned at her, "I wouldn't want that."

"Sure you wouldn't." Anna settled into the seat as they started the descent. "I am curious if you've found anything out about our…"

"Rapist?" John mouthed and Anna nodded. "Nothing yet. The problem is the locals I know get concerned about the drunk and disorderly ones. Not the quiet and lethal."

"Our loss." Anna leaned back into the seat as the plane turned to land. She looked out the window, "It's been a long time since I've been in Berlin."

"I didn't know you'd been to Berlin." John flipped through the magazine in the pocket in front of him before snorting at an advertisement. "What brought you here in the past?"

"Mary and I did a gap year." Anna laughed, "It was more of a gap three months since I got my commission early and had to get back for training. Cut our backpacking trip short but we managed to get to the border of Turkey before we had to turn back."

"Did Robert get your training moved early?" John tucked the magazine away as the plane bumped and jostled them during the landing.

"I think he wanted to make sure Mary stayed out of trouble." Anna shook her head, "Not that it worked."

"Was that the trip that started the whole Pamuk Problem?"

"I do remember you using that phrase when you wrote about it… rather respectfully I'll say."

"I tried." John leaned back into his seat as the plane bumped and skidded on the tarmac. "I wanted to wring his ass up a flagpole but I managed him well enough in that article I wrote for him when he became a junior minister in Turkey."

"I heard it's why you're not allowed in Turkey until the sitting Prime Minister finally gets out of office."

John shrugged, "It was worth it to tell the world the horrible things he did to women. And watching that clip of one of them beating his ass to the ground with a crutch… I took that as all the payment I'd ever need."

"You're a particularly interesting man John Bates." Anna sighed, going to stand as the plane taxied to a halt but John caught her hand. "What?"

"Wait for the people who need to make connections get off. We've got time."

"I don't like sitting and I don't like waiting."

"Then you'll have to get used to it." John sat back, smiling at her.

"What's got you grinning like that?"

"You'll get a week in my world."

Anna pursed her lips a moment and then nodded, "I guess after six months of you living mine this seems fair."

"I enjoyed every moment of it." John turned over his shoulder, watching for the end of the line. "We're good to go I think."

They grabbed their things and hurried into the main terminal. Anna tipped her head back and basked for a moment in the direct sunlight there. "I may never go back if I get this much sunlight here."

"Welcome to the Tegel airport."

"Please don't tell me you're about to my tour guide." Anna adjusted the strap on her bag and grabbed her roller bag tighter. "I can stand those."

"I've only made connections in this airport so no." John pulled his messenger bag closer. "Heathrow on the other hand, I know the ins and outs of that place."

"You travel a lot."

"So do you."

"I meant out of normal airports instead of those airstrips attached to an airbase or under heavy fire." Anna stopped for a group of tourists speaking rapidly in a Scandinavian language and a clump of Chinese tourists that appeared petrified of the idea of leaving their group or having to speak with the Scandinavians. "I enjoy the few times in my life I can leave an airport or sit in a cramped and uncomfortable chair waiting for a flight instead of rattling in a tin can with nylon straps tightened over your chest."

"I've actually taken a couple trips inside those cans and I'll be honest, not the best way to travel."

"What is the best way to travel?" Anna kept up with John as they wove between shoppers, tourists, businessmen, and a host of students either screaming to one another or paying each other no mind at all. "On camel?"

"No, it's in first class luxury seating." John held a door open for her.

"And when did a newspaper columnist get the wherewithal to afford that?"

"There was a Singaporean businessman who wanted me to ghostwrite his autobiography. Flew me out, put me up in the nicest hotel, and then told me his life story."

"Did you write the book?"

"I make it a policy to never write about drug lords." John's brow furrowed, "Let's just say, the ride back crammed into an economy class seat was worth my dignity and the article I wrote on him."

"Was that the one who got twenty years in a Malaysian prison?"

"That's the one. Although," John cringed, "He'll be running the place so there's really nothing to worry about too heavily in his case. It might slow his business a bit but he'll be fine."

"His state is not what matters. I wanted to make sure his drugs weren't getting out to the streets."

"Not through him anymore. The government there is very… robust in their crackdown on that kind of thing. Plus, with the Chinese to help them there wasn't anything else they could do but destroy it all."

"Too bad for drug dealers. All that money they won't get from rich Singaporean kids who can't waste their lives and fortunes on drugs now."

"Don't think I didn't hear your sarcasm there." John brushed off the men and women offering 'best rates' for the taxis they drove and moved them into the official queue. "And I've done a couple stories on those you know."

"I read them." Anna responded to his surprise with a forced furrow in her own brow before making it a smile. "I followed all of your writing after Bangkok, not just the story you told me there of the war reporter and his German mistress."

"We don't know she was his mistress." John handed over his roller bag with Anna's before holding the door open for the back of the taxi. "We don't even know if they were lovers."

"Okay, I'll accept your lack of information on the condition you NEVER use that term again."

"Which term?" John frowned and then grinned at her, "What, _lovers_?"

Anna shuddered, "It's a horribly troubling word of the same distressing nature as _moist_. We accept it's a word and therefore all decide never to use it."

"I thought it was apt."

"We'll leave it at that and just say, from now on, that we don't know if they were having sex."

"It's not like they were just shagging each other." John ducked into the taxi with her and passed over a card with the address of the hotel. "People didn't do that back then."

"Oh my goodness, you're one of those!" Anna turned in her seat toward him, mouth hanging open.

"One of whom?"

"Those who think that people before the Internet were wholesome and only had sex after marriage." Anna laughed, "You do realize that birth records will have dates less than nine months after marriage before you were born, yes?"

"I know mine was, yes." John put a hand to his heart, "My parents who married because my mother got pregnant and my father adored her."

"Did your mother adore your father?"

"Not until later but that's not the point. But I'm talking about this couple and their experiences."

"What, you think because he shares your name he's got your ideals and your sense of dedicated honor?"

"I was actually hoping he'd be better than me." John shifted in his seat. "And didn't make the mistake of falling in love with an unobtainable woman."

"Who said I'm unobtainable?" Anna furrowed her brow and then pointed at him, "I do hope you've not been talking to Mary."

"You say that like Mary and I are even friends." John settled in his seat, "When I say 'unobtainable' I mean that it would be difficult to get someone like you."

"Why?"

"First off, you just spent six months in Kandahar. I can't see that ending well for a man who wants to buy a bunch of flowers and take you to dinner while you're trying to finish an emergency surgery with no electricity so you're using a pen light and a Swiss army knife."

"You make it sound so dramatic."

"Isn't it?"

Anna paused, "I regret sending you that email."

"See?" John dodged the playful punch Anna aimed at his arm. "Second, how does a man handle the fact that you're smarter than them?"

"That one's easy." Anna shrugged, "Just find a man dumb enough not to notice."

"Men always notice that."

"And yet they don't notice when their fly is down or when they're being so obviously rude at holiday parties."

"Fair enough."

"As for how they date someone like me," Anna grabbed her bag as the taxi stopped outside the hotel. "They'd just have to be someone like you."

"Someone like me?" John climbed out after her, pulling the necessary bills to pay the driver. "What does that mean?"

"Someone who travels as much as I do, isn't worried about how much smarter I am than he is, and is really good at sex."

"I'll take that compliment and match you with the idea that you and I could have a lot of fun on this trip."

"I'm here on holiday." Anna took her roller bag and passed him his. "I'm not here to impress anyone."

"You don't have to impress me. I've already experienced your finer abilities." John winked at her and then yelped when Anna landed a blow on his kidneys. "Ow!"

She passed him, walking into the hotel and stepping just to the side as he joined her. They walked to the front desk and John handed over his passport as Anna slipped hers over the counter as well. The woman there, typing at speeds Anna thought impossible, then smiled at both of them before passing back their passports.

"You're room is ready."

Anna frowned, "Wait, _room_ singular?"

The woman nodded, "Yes, just the one room."

Anna turned to John, tapping the counter. "You booked one room?"

"All the rest were booked and it was cheaper."

Anna turned to the woman, "Is there a way to get a cot in there?"

"There's a sofa. It's part of the package that includes a large Jacuzzi tub, a walk in shower with no less than fifty jets and five settings, and a large television."

"And that was cheaper than two rooms or one with twin beds?"

John sighed, "I'll take the sofa."

"Thank you." Anna smiled at the woman behind the counter, "And thank you."

"Have a nice day."

They walked to the lift in silence and Anna reached forward to press the button. She faced the lifts and John turned to her, about to say something but thought better of it and turned back to face the lifts. A ding sounded and they entered, pivoting so John could press the button for their floor.

When the doors closed John turned to her and opened his mouth to explain but Anna held up a hand. "I'm going to see this room before I make a judgment."

"I hope you don't feel it suggests anything."

"It suggests a lot but I'm still deciding if I like what it suggests." The doors opened and Anna stepped out, dramatically moving her hands, "Lead on sir."

John dragged his bag behind him, Anna trying to keep her sniggers to herself, and stopped in front of a door. He slipped the key into the holder and dragged it out as the light blinked green so he could press forward. Anna waited for the door to open and then her mouth dropped.

The large room held a bed big enough for her entire hospital staff to lay out and a sofa large enough to fit Anna and John lying side-to-side. She left her wardrobe in front of a chest of drawers almost tall enough for her to fit into them laying lengthwise. Pushing into the bathroom she saw the large shower and the Jacuzzi tub before turning to face John, catching her hands on the doorway.

"This was cheaper?"

"Are we not going to talk about how I'm trying to impress you?"

"I think you impressed me when you dug out this story and when you came at your friend's request to sleep on a cot for six months in Kandahar." Anna walked to the bed, sitting on it before laying herself back on the surface. "Personally, I think that was more than enough to impress me."

"Then if I'd brought you some rice in a soup at the clinic…?"

"It'd be enough." Anna closed her eyes and let her breathing ease, "But I might take back everything I just said after considering the way this pillow sucks me in like a cloud."

"Do you want to shower or anything or-"

"Shhhh," Anna held up a finger, her eyes still closed. "I can't leave. The mattress and I have an understanding and I finally earned its trust. If I leave now it'll be suspicious."

"We've got an appointment with the archives."

"Just ten minutes."

"You won't wake up in ten minutes. You'll be as dead as anything." John's hand grabbed hers and helped her stand. "Shower and you'll feel better."

"Maybe." Anna sighed, dropping her carryon on the bureau and bringing her roller bag up to unzip on a table. "But I won't be more comfortable than I was on that bed."

John grinned at her, opening his bag on the sofa. "Still think we should've gotten separate rooms?"

"Don't rub it in, it's unsporting." Anna grabbed her things. "And I hope there's no peeking."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

"Dream all you want." Anna winked at him, "It's all you've got for that sofa tonight."

"Tease."

"Seducer." Anna pointed at the bed, "I know what that means."

"What?"

"You want a repeat of Bangkok on a real bed."

"Who wouldn't?" John came toward her and Anna let her breath catch when he stood over her. "Don't you?"

"It's a thought. But not one we're having now." She put a hand to his chest.

He covered it, "Then when?"

"I don't know. I guess it'll be a surprise." Anna closed the door, her smile splitting her face.

* * *

Battle of the Bulge, 1945

John shivered, the two other men in the hole with him pressed as close to him as they could manage. They bundled together, burying fingers in their armpits as the wind blew over their hole to chill right to their bones. The man at his right chattered his teeth so loudly John was sure they would break out of his head.

"Alright there Branson?"

"I thought I was in Belgium." His arms fluttered under the meager blanket, trying to pull it closer as if to keep in the little semblance of warmth he managed to trap internally. "I didn't think they took me to Russia without telling me."

"We'll get through it."

"We'll lose all of our fingers and toes doing it." The man on John's left hissed through clamped jaws that shuddered his whole body with shivers longer and larger than John had ever seen. "I knew I should've told my father yes to that chance to go to Bletchley Circle."

"And join some cryptographic team?" Branson scoffed, "You're meant for more than numbers Talbot."

"Says the man they tried to recruit before the war started." Talbot snipped back, "I never thought I'd see you deride the chance to be warm and still do good work."

"I didn't want to be trapped in rooms with paper and maps and algorithms. Much as I like maths I wanted to feel like I was doing good. Not having people point and jeer when I passed because I wasn't doing my duty as a whole and healthy male."

"What about you Bates?" Talbot nudged John and it almost rocked their rough trio over with how tightly they held together. "What brought you to the Bulge?"

"I'm trying to get to Germany." John chattered, forcing his teeth together in the hope it might stop the hot air leaving his body in puffs.

"Who wants to get to Germany?" Branson shook his head. "Personally I just want to chase all the Jerries back there so we can build a sodding big wall to lock them in and toss away the key."

"No," John shook his head, "There are good people there. People who deserve to be free."

"Didn't you live there awhile back?" Talbot buried his head in his arms, forming a little cave between his chest and arms to try and heat his reddening nose.

"It reported for the _Manchester Guardian_ there." John shivered again, fingers quivering as they gripped his trousers. "Just like I'm reporting for them here."

"When they told us we would have a journalist with us I thought we were doomed." Branson laughed, "But you're not bad at this. Fought before?"

"I served during the Great Arab Revolt."

"The one in Palestine?" Talbot risked a head up, "You went to the Holy Land?"

"It wasn't too holy when I was there." John clutched at his knees, trying to compress his body as compactly as possible to stop his fingers and toes going numb. "I liked Berlin better."

"Until they expelled everyone and declared war." Branson leaned over to address Talbot. "What souvenir do you want if you ever reach the Jerries?"

"For them to surrender so we can go bloody home." Talbot's voice muffled, "What about you Bates? What would you want?"

"I just want to find my wife."

Both men jolted away from John in shock, Branson recovering first. "Bloody hell, you never told us you had a wife."

"Because she's German." John reached his trembling fingers into his breast pocket and removed a picture, holding back a moment before showing it to Branson and then Talbot in the bluish light of their hole.

"Careful showing this to us," Talbot warned, "It marks you for death."

"You asked." John tucked it away. "She and I got married but the German government refused to recognize the union and the British Embassy wasn't allowing Germans to come to England. I couldn't stay and she couldn't leave."

"So you left her?"

"She pushed me onto the train." John forced himself to look forward, "Said I was to find her when the war ended and that's what I'm going to do."

"Then Talbot and I've got a job to do now." Branson clapped a hand to John's shoulder before burying it in his armpit again. "Get you to your blonde beauty so you can start having babies."

"I'll help with the first part. I hope you've got the second part managed on your own." Talbot snorted, lifting his blanket to cover his head.

"The second part is well within my abilities, don't worry over that." John pushed himself back to rest his head on the wall of the hole. "I've just got to get the first part done now."

"They'll let up and we'll push through. It's what we do." Branson tipped his head to the side and pointed, "Hear that? That's us, pressing forward."

"Then it's Germany sweet Germany." Talbot lifted his head, "And then home sweet home."

* * *

Berlin, Present Day

Anna closed the book in front of her, rubbing at her eyes. "It's amazing anyone can read this."

"It's in German." John responded without looking up from the book he scanned, taking occasional notes on the pad beside him.

"And I read German but this writing is ridiculous."

"How else do you get all of that on one page." John managed a wink at her, "It's what you do when you're writing a lot of relevant information but you've got to keep it uniform and-"

"Thank you for explaining the basics of record keeping to a doctor." Anna shut her book, "This one's not going to help you."

"This one might."

"What one?"

"This one right-" John waved a hand toward the side and then frowned as he realized the pile that was there. He turned to Anna and she pointed to the pile beside her. "How'd you do that?"

"Because I'm a wizard." Anna cringed, "Sorry, I should've told you earlier but they're really specific about the appropriate moment to tell a Muggle you're a wizard and I had to get all this approval and-"

"Okay, okay, ha, ha you're not funny." John turned back to his book as Anna laughed, lifting her stack to carry to the cart next to the table. "Besides, I already know you're a squib."

"Not hardly." Anna pushed the cart away and took her seat again. "I will say I expected a bit more from this trip they were so reluctant to grant you."

"They were afraid I'd ruin something."

"There's nothing to ruin if there's nothing here." Anna put her elbows on the table and clapped her hands to her neck, massaging there as her head hung down and then she stretched her back toward the chair. "Sorry this all seems like a waste."

"It's not a waste."

"I gave up a week of leave to find a lot of people like the name 'Anna' and that Johannes Schmidt was not just the worst villain name in MARVEL history."

"It wasn't the worst." John ticked off on his fingers, "Killmonger, Molecule Man, Rhino, Doctor Doom… could we get any more obvious?"

"Or melodramatic?" Anna blinked at him and then stopped. She seized the book from under him and turned it in her hands. "What does this mean?"

"It means a church marriage not documented by the State." John tipped his neck sideways to read as Anna tried to position the book so both of them could see the contents. "Some of the marriages then weren't State approved since it was meant to hide Jews or other undesirables under better names."

"That sounds made up but I'll take it." Anna traced the line. "And forgive my lack of German proficiency but that seems to say 'Anna Schmidt' married one 'John Bates' right before the British reporters, citizens, and ambassadors were expelled from Germany."

"It does appear to be them."

"Well, well," Anna sat back, a self-satisfied smirk on her face. "Tut, tut Mr. Bates it looks like rain."

John pulled the book toward him, sneaking a furtive look around before slipping out his phone to snap a photo of the book and then the section on the page. He tucked it away before the librarian could see him. "I guess they weren't just shagging one another."

'That's too bad because I was hoping they were just banging for fun."

"No you didn't." John stood up, tucking the book away to slip it onto the cart.

"You're right." Anna stood up, joining him on the way out of the building. "I'm a secret romantic."

"Not so secret." John jiggled his phone at her. "You came all the way to Berlin to find this."

"And all those articles." Anna shrugged, "Only question now, what happened to them after that?"


	7. Andante, Andante

Berlin, Present Day

Anna let out a deep breath, taking a final turn in the bathroom to see herself at all angles in the mirror, and opened the door. John, sprawled back on the bed, flipped idly through the channels on the television large enough to float survivors of a boat wreck. When he caught sight of her out of the corner of his eye he dropped the remote and struggled to speak while standing but almost tripped himself onto his ass on the floor.

"I guess it works then." She pulled at the material, as if inspecting it. "I almost went for gold but I felt that'd been done before so I settled for silver and blue."

Anna cringed, "I do hope you're not disappointed."

"Never." John swallowed hard, "I just wonder if you're about to put everyone at this thing to shame."

"It's an Embassy dinner. It's not an issue." Anna pulled out a matching clutch, tucking a few things into it, before taking the metal strap to her shoulder. "Though I'm still not sure how you got an invite to something like this."

"You don't think they'd invite me to one of these things?"

"I'm inclined to believe people like you don't get invited to these sorts of things because of the things you might say to someone." Anna pulled out a shopping bag, removing a few items and passing one to him. "You might want to wear this."

"What?" She did not answer, going to the bathroom again to affix earrings and a necklace that dropped between the V of her dress. After a moment she emerged again and John held up the watch, "I can't wear this."

"Why not?" Anna found her shoes, getting into the complicated heels so she stood almost even with his chin. "I think it'll make you look like you belong there."

"I think it's too expensive."

"Then don't remove the tag and we'll take it back before our flight tomorrow." Anna laughed, "It's just a watch, John."

"And I understand you spending more money in a single shopping trip than I think I spent in my whole life-"

"Hey, you try not buying anything new for six months." Anna huffed, draping a wrap over her shoulders. "The closest thing I've gotten to actually buying clothes was a little online shopping I managed when the Internet was working at fully speed one day. And all those things are sitting in boxes at my neighbor's house right now."

"Not to be opened for another six months."

"Let's not talk about that." Anna frowned, "I don't want to think about how they might be out of style before I even get to wear them."

"Then we'll talk about how I got the invitation." John grabbed his jacket and buttoned it. "You might be surprised to know that I've a few friends who get invited to these things and didn't feel like attending."

"One cold chicken dinner is enough for them?"

"Aren't they?" John slipped his things into his pockets and led her to the door. "He knew I was in town and offered the invitation to me."

"For what price?" Anna raised an eyebrow and John shrugged.

"I've just got to do some exposé on a competitor."

"You promised that?"

"I promised I'd look into it and write an article." John adjusted his lapels, "I've still got morals you know."

"John Bates the Great Crusader." Anna smiled to herself as the lift doors opened. "I do hope you write your autobiography one day and I can read all about all the times you've single-handedly saved the world."

"I wouldn't dare be so disgustingly self-inflating."

"It's true, you don't need it." Anna kept her focus forward, stepping out of the elevator toward the front of the foyer. "And I take back my insinuations from when we first arrived at this hotel. It's far nicer than I deserve."

"Is this why you let me have the other side of the bed instead of sticking me on the sofa?" John caught up with her, flagging down a car.

"There's a bar in the middle of that sofa and as much as I enjoy the idea of your squirming, I'm not a sadist." Anna nodded at him as he opened the door for her. "Besides, I enjoy having you close. It's a comforting thought."

"We could be closer," John whispered in her ear as his hand settled on her leg.

Anna turned to him, but did not remove his hand. "Now, now, we've not got the time for that."

"I could just turn this cab around." The driver turned back over the seat and Anna scowled at him.

"No, you'll drive us to the Embassy. I've no desire to waste the time and effort I put into this dress and this outfit when I'll be stuck in fatigues for the next six months."

"I thought you said you hoped it wouldn't be that long." Anna turned back to John's face. "That Robert was going to arrange for you to leave sooner than that."

"I just received the confirmation by email. Harrogate's approved the remainder of the year-long deployment and I'll be helping train a new staff of doctors and nurses." Anna rested her head back on the seat, "And I said I didn't want to think about it, not that Robert was arranging anything sooner."

"Is this because you insisted on this holiday?"

"No, but the attitude I had in his office wasn't going to win me any prizes." Anna bit the inside of her cheek. "It's the nature of the job."

"But you're going back?"

"I'm not going to end my career in a court martial because I went AWOL." Anna shuddered, "My parents would roll over in their graves and my grandfather would rise from his grave to hunt me down himself."

"Then we'll enjoy the party and just see where we go from there." John slipped his hand from her leg to hold her hand. "Give ourselves a bit of time."

"Like a date?"

"Exactly like a date." John snorted, "Although, speaking with complete honesty here, it's the nicest date I've ever taken anyone on."

"I don't know. I thought you swooping in for what you thought was a rescue in Bangkok was a nice date." Anna laughed, "But, also speaking in completely honesty, any date with you would be the nicest date."

"Really?"

"John, you could set this car on fire and I would think it was a great date." Anna shrugged a shoulder, "Maybe not my favorite first date but still up there."

"First date?"

"Since we've never officially had a date, you asking me to a ball at an Embassy counts as a first date." Anna tapped her fingers against the door. "It'll be hard to match if anyone else dared to try."

"I hope you're not about to give me more flak for the comment about you being unobtainable."

"Only to agree with you." Anna swept a hand down her form. "How does a man get a woman to dress up like this without her being very hard to impress?"

"He doesn't." Anna and John turned to the driver but he only shrugged. "I thought it was public conversation."

"It wasn't but we're too far into this ride to stop it now I guess." John faced Anna. "I don't think my editor'll let me stay in Kandahar for much longer."

"It's not like it's too expensive for him."

"But it's a drain on resources." John shuffled in his seat. "He'll let me finish the article and then he'll have me back in London."

"How long'll it take you?"

"See," John wagged his finger at her, "I know what you're thinking but the problem is that he's on to my attempts to extend stories. I used them up before I met you."

"That's not fair."

"I'll have to be back by the end of next month." John pulled out his wallet and paid the cab driver as they stopped in front of the Embassy. "So I get another three weeks of your company and then it's back to the cold and damp."

"What about the other story?" Anna took John's hand as he helped her out of the car. "What do I do about that?"

"I've got a few contacts I can give you for it."

"You know as well as I do they won't meet with me without a face-to-face introduction with you present." Anna stopped, working her hand through John's arm while her other held up the skirt of her dress to ascend the stairs blinking with the flashes of a few cameras. "I hope this picture doesn't get anywhere."

"They're not going to care about you or me when you've got ambassadors and big businessmen at this function." John rolled his eyes at those gathered. "This is cheap journalism a step above the paparazzi."

"Because they're not sweating it out in the heat of Afghanistan or swimming through shit to find their stories?"

John stopped, just inside the door, and handed the man there the invitation before spreading his arms for the wand they brushed over him and Anna. "You think I'm an elitist, don't you?"

"You're the one denigrating the people out there just trying to earn a living." Anna handed over her handbag for the security guard to check it before pulling her wrap to hang around her neck. "Just because their story'll be up in an hour, with pictures, and more than a few spelling errors doesn't make what they do any less important than what you're doing."

"And I think you're just trying to rile me up." John held out his hand to her.

"And if I were?" Anna smiled to herself, keeping her gaze forward as they took the stairs to enter the large room where other bright dresses and tuxedo-ed men milled around to the tiny little band in the corner with a DJ next to them. "What would my punishment be?"

"I didn't take you for a bondage type."

"You never know." Anna winked at him. "I might like to tie you to a bedpost and get into a leather bustier and use one of your leather belts."

John shivered and Anna patted his arm, "But not tonight, I left the bustier in Harrogate."

"Tease."

"Always." Anna nodded toward the coatcheck. "I don't want to leave anything on a table in a place like this."

"Why, because you forgot your sidearm?"

"Because I trust these people less than those who'll point a gun in my face. Those people tell you their intentions. People like this always have an angle and I'm not excited about finding out what it is once everything I own is missing." Anna handed over the wrap and her handbag, taking the ticket and tucking it into one of John's inner pockets. "There, so it's like you always carry my things."

"To give me purpose?"

"To make sure I can't run away." Anna took his hand, "I've a mind for a bit of mingling if you do."

"I do." John curled his fingers around hers and they walked into the crush.

The appetizers left her disappointed and she avoided the alcohol. John's fingers constantly brushed against the bare skin of her arms and back and Anna turned to him, relaxing her shoulders for half a beat before everything in her went on alert again. He lowered his mouth to her ear, keeping his voice low.

"You're on alert Anna."

"I'm in enemy territory. It's unavoidable." She nodded across the room. "It's part of my job."

"Then let me worry about it a moment." He held a hand out to her, "Dance with me?"

Anna took a deep breath and released the tension from her muscles as John took her in his arms. They started with the beat, a combination from the DJ and the little band, that had John guiding her around the circular space. She allowed him the lead, trusting in his gentle hand below her shoulder blade and the other holding her hand out from her body.

"Where did you learn how to dance?" He asked, lifting his arm for her to spin out and then bringing her back in step.

"It was an elective at Uni and I rather enjoyed it." Anna followed his lead and dipped back for a beat. "What about you?"

"There was a community center trying to keep boys from smoking and doing drugs." He snorted, "They didn't realize it just made it easier for us for get ahold of said drugs when they put us in close quarters together."

"And you partook?"

"Can't say I ever had an interest in drugs." John grinned, bringing Anna as close as he could in public and she gasped at the feel of him. "Girls, on the other hand, were the name of the game and I was very good at dancing and getting them back then."

"You're not so bad now." Anna tightened her grip on his hand a second and he winced, letting her back a fraction. "Makes me wonder if you've been practicing."

"Is that a question or a suspicion?" John continued into the next steps, forcing Anna to stay on her guard.

"I wouldn't blame you. It's been almost two years and we're not really anything." She dipped back again, floating with the music and noting the way John kept them closer than before. "I just wouldn't want to think I was horning in on the territory some other woman was marking out for herself."

"You're not." John paused them, keeping step with the others who had joined the floor, but could not dance as well. "In answer to the question you're refusing to ask, there's not been anyone since Bangkok. Not like there were many before that but definitely none afterward."

"Two years is a long time to be celibate."

"Well," John winced, "Depends on if you think self-care is celibacy."

"Depends on how you're self-caring I guess." Anna paused, "And since you'll be the gentleman and refuse to ask it back, "I've not either."

"Why not?" John pulled them to the side. "You're an attractive woman and your difficult work hours aside, you could get anyone you wanted. I'm not stupid."

"You're not and that's why." Anna tugged John out of the crowd and into a small hallway. "After Bangkok we started writing one another and… I don't know I just couldn't look at another guy without comparing him to you. I couldn't read you emails and laugh at your handwritten letters or find your articles and then go out to try and find someone to knob for the evening. I'd only see your face and that wasn't fair to them or you or me."

John stared at her, "You've been thinking about me for a year?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Anna waved her hands. "You were the finest man I'd ever met and I couldn't find that anywhere else."

"I couldn't either." John crowded closer to her, putting a hand to her face and Anna shivered so all the hairs on her body stood on end. "I'd look at women and only see how they weren't you. You're the only one I wanted to share this story with me and I've never wanted to share a story with anyone before."

They finally met one another's eyes, and Anna stroked down his face. "You're the only person I'd want to share my story with. The only person I want for the rest of my life."

John turned to kiss her palm and then lowered his head to place his lips gently on hers. Anna put her hand up, stopping him. When he frowned she turned the knob nearest to them and, checking the room, led John inside.

In the dark of a room lit only by the crack of light from under the door and the streetlights from outside the building, Anna flipped the lock. She tried to turn but John he pressed her into the door. His lips ghosted on her skin and his hands slipped the fabric of her dress to rub over her. The rasp of the material set her nerves sparking and fizzing as she put one hand to the wall to hold herself up and the other covered the hand closest to her.

"Don't think I didn't notice, when you came out of the bathroom-"

"That I'm not wearing a bra?" Anna turned her head slightly, "Or that there's only a thong stopping you from being where we both want you to be right now."

"I wouldn't be so cruel." He finally kissed at the juncture between her neck and her shoulder. "I'd want you ready."

"How ready can I be? I've waited for almost two years for this." Anna keened and tried to force his hand down but John stopped her.

"If I'm going to shag you in this," John looked around, "Office that some poor custodian has to clean in the morning, I'm doing it properly."

"The first time we had sex you took me doggy style on a bed."

"And with these heels I'd be tempted to do the same thing again. Or on that desk over there but," John lowered his voice, the skirt of her dress lifting up in one of his hands while the other moved over the exposed skin in the V of the dress. "I want to make this worth the wait."

"You're always worth the wait."

"Thank you." He paused, "You don't mind that you can't see me do you?"

"Why would I mind?" Anna grabbed her skirt for him as his fingers teased over her thigh to get closer to her thong. "I can hear you and it's been your voice in my head for a year. This is just fulfilling my fantasies."

"I thought your fantasy was to suck me off in a shower."

"Like the one with more jets than seems reasonable? Like the location you mentioned wanted to have me up against the wall in?" Anna tried to laugh but his fingers teased just under her breast and her head dipped forward against the wall in front of her.

"It's not nice to tease."

"I just wanted you to know that I remembered." Anna paused, noting the way John's fingers also stopped. "Just like I know you remembered."

"How could I forget anything about you Anna?" He kissed at her neck again, fingers moving toward their intended targets so he stroked over her breast at the same time he wormed into her thong to ran a finger down her in a stripe.

Her hand on the wall clutched into a fist, banging lightly on the surface, and her back arched. The breezed of his breath moved down her back, placing intermittent kisses so she never knew when he would leave one or just pass by, and all the while he continued to taunt and tease her with skilled fingers playing a melody at her breasts and a harmony at her folds until she was weeping. Anna twisted, scrunching her hand in the material of her dress when John's tongue darted out at the bottom of the V at her back, just above the string of her thong.

He worked back up, finally inserting a finger as his thumb flicked and rubbed at her bundle of nerves. Anna rested her head on the wall, hauling in deep breaths while her body attempted to press her chest more fully into his grip and her hips rutted against the work of his hand. When he added another finger the slick sounds of his efforts drown out the blood rushing in her ears and her heart almost stopped thumping just to burst inside her.

John tweaked at her nipple and Anna rotated her head enough to kiss him. Her hand at her skirt dropped the material, leaving it to drape over the arm wrapped over her thigh to keep his hand working at her, and clutched the back of his neck to force his lips to hers. She stuttered and rocked against his hand, feeling the evidence of his arousal resting at the indentation of her ass as it shifted and rubbed against her with her motions.

Anna worked her tongue into his mouth, burying her shriek as John sent her over the edge, in the interior of his mouth. They broke apart, John massaging her down from her high as he hiked her skirt back up. He tied it around her waist and slid the straps of her thong down her legs until he crouched behind her. She spread her legs when he nudged one and then cried out as his tongue licked along her.

It started all over again. The plateau where he left her only led to a higher high as her fritzing and sparking nerves surged back to life. John's hands sculpted and scraped down her legs while his tongue licked and laved over her. He even drove it into her before coming back to wrap over her nerves. When she came again, almost hard enough to leave permanent marks in her hand with her teeth, Anna collapsed against the wall.

The sound of a zipper and the shimming motion behind her only became real when he ran himself along her. She tried to pull herself upright, whimpering when she attempted to gain control of her soaring body. And, for the brief instant before John drove himself inside her, Anna wondered if maybe two years was too long a time to go without sex. Maybe it gave people the wrong idea about the level of amazement one should have at such an experience.

Except, Anna's thoughts flickered and wavered to the steady thump of John moving against her, with him it would not be a lack of understanding or experience. This was what someone had with the person they loved. Or at least she hoped that was what it was. If not, then at least it was exquisitely wonderful sex.

John's determined kisses at her neck and back, hands still working over her scorching skin, brought Anna back to the moment. She widened her stance in her heels and rocked back as he drove forward. He stuttered and then groaned as Anna twisted and gyrated her hips back to meet each of his thrusts with a determined snap. A snap that left the room echoing with the wet beat of their driving bodies.

His fingers stuttered on her and Anna held still for a moment as John drove through his climax. One that took her right to the edge and his slipping fingers finished for her almost unconsciously. John draped over her back and Anna used the leverage of the wall to keep them standing.

A moment later he pulled out, grabbing tissue from the nearest desk and using it to clean himself before getting on his knees to take care of her. Anna stayed still, her body trembling and quivering in the aftermath as he did something as simple as bring her knickers back up or untie her dress. They arranged themselves for a moment, Anna pivoting to set her back on the wall behind her.

They giggled a moment before Anna drew John closer. She kissed him quickly, wiping at the evidence of her lipstick smeared over him. "Wouldn't want anyone to know what we were just doing in here."

"Pretty sure they'll smell it." John fluffed out her dress. "You chose this on purpose."

"I needed to seduce you since I didn't know when I'd get another chance."

"Well," John checked the watch on his wrist, "I say we leave this rather dull party and go back to where I can do that in a bit more style."

"The large bed you definitely sold the farm to afford?"

"There was no farm." John ran a finger down Anna's cheek. "But it was worth it for you."

"Then please take me to bed Mr. Bates."

They tired to ease themselves out of the party without making too much of a fuss and if anyone saw them, or cared, they said nothing. The people at the coat check retrieved their things with nothing more than cursory professional interest and then John and Anna were free. A cab took them back to the hotel and Anna ignored John's protests to pay the woman before they hurried inside. Even the lift felt interminable but when they managed to get to their room, it all slowed again.

Anna took John's hand, shedding her wrap and clutch before removing his jacket. A gentle tug loosened his tie and then a snap had it floating to the ground. When John tried to cover her hands Anna stopped him, shaking her head, and undid his collar and buttons before sliding his braces over his shoulders and down his arms. They hit his hips and Anna pulled one wrist at a time into her grip to free him of his shirt.

It floated to the floor as Anna went to her knees, untying his shoes and then unbuttoning his trousers. The zip echoed, John shivering as the motion passed over where he started to reawaken. Anna worked her hands to remove his shoes and then his trousers. Leading him to the sofa she let each of his socks fall to the floor before pulling him by the elastic of his boxers.

They snapped and John shuddered. Anna only licked her lips and then dragged them down his legs before she pushed him onto the sofa. He sat there, legs spread, and Anna settled herself between them.

"If you remember everything," She whispered, running her lips from his ear to his neck, her fingers digging and massaging at his thighs as she knelt on the floor between his spread legs. "Then you'll remember what I wanted to do to you in Bangkok."

John only nodded but Anna took it as answer enough, kissing and sucking a path in zigzag over his chest to each of his nipples in turn. He shuddered and hissed when she ran her tongue over them and then nipped lightly at them. A buck under her had him trying to move but Anna dug her nails in to keep him still as she traced her tongue over the crevices and divots of his chest to follow the slightest of indentations at his waist from where his boxers sat. Each little divot received her full attention while her hands shifted ever closer to his growing arousal.

When her lips and tongue final worked back, her hands already started pulling and squeezing him to full life. John groaned and clutched a hand in her hair, holding tightly to the back of her head when she worked from base to tip with just the edge of her tongue. Anna smiled, pressing kisses to his quivering and swelling skin while following the urges of his hips and hand at her skull.

Using her hands at his thighs to get the leverage she needed, Anna took just the head in her mouth. She hollowed her cheeks, scraping ever-so-slightly with her teeth, and held him in place when he tried to move. Her tongue licked over him and ran the edge of his slit before Anna moved deeper to suck farther.

Each of her motions drove him farther and farther past sanity until Anna finally pulled back. She noted the pulse of him for a second and stood before him. John's hazy eyes tried to focus as Anna kicked her shoes to the side and worked the cloth over her shoulders to hang at her waist and leave her chest exposed to him. He did not say a word as she shed the rest of the dress and then slid her thong down her legs.

When she was finally as naked as he was, Anna climbed on top of him. Her knees settled at either side of him, pulling tight to keep her right at his hips, and she trapped him between them. Her fingers followed a pattern only she could see over his face before she kissed him.

John twisted a hand in her hair and the other grabbed her ass. He held her close, bucking up to ride his erection against her nerves. Anna used both of her hands at either side of his head to hold him steady as she took control of his mouth. With each dip and run of her tongue, John gripped her ass harder to pull her against him as he tried to move.

"Join us please." He finally whimpered and Anna shifted just enough to slide herself over him.

They rested their foreheads together, their chests bumping as they tried to breathe, and Anna turned to see John's eyes. She smiled, holding his jaw. "I've never seen you when we've done this."

"I want you to see me forever." He thrust into her and Anna's eyes closed at the sensation.

They worked together, holding and battling for the edge. John's lips and teeth and tongue tempted and teased at her breasts as Anna drove her fingers through his hair. She gripped and guided but he paid her no more mind than she paid him earlier. Instead, all Anna could do was tighten her internal muscles to try and drive him toward the edge he seemed determined to let her leap off first.

Through their nonverbal combat, expressed just through their moans and grunts and sighs and the sounds of their joining, John broke first. He stuttered his final motions and then gripped Anna by the ass. Her arms wrapped over him by instinct as he lifted them both. Walking the few steps he needed, John dropped her back onto the bed as he still stood at the edge. He twitched slightly and Anna wondered if he really was as done as he suggested.

But when he drove forward, losing all the finesse and romance and seduction of the office and even the desperate drives from the sofa, Anna could only grip the duvet under her. She writhed and twisted, raising her legs to his waist and trying to wrap over him. But John looped one leg over his elbow to open her further and drove deeper than he ever had before.

Anna lost herself to it, her neck forcing her head back into the comfort of the duvet under her, and her back arching to try and release her tension. It was John's fingers at her clit and then his mouth at her breasts that did it. She lost herself in the overdrive of sensation and synapses firing faster than they ever had before, and Anna tumbled over the edge.

In the few moments she had of conscious thought, she realized John followed her. He caught himself on an arm next to her, their heavy breathing syncopating as they tried to slow their heart rates. Anna shifted slightly, pulling away from him to get further up the bed, and reached back to drag him next to her. John followed, seeming to lose his strength as he went until he collapsed next to her.

Anna pushed her hair back, laughing. "This bed's better than the last one."

"But we were married then." John mumbled into the pillow, finally managing to raise his head to look at her. "Here we're just shagging one another."

"I'm about to use a word I hate, so I do hope you understand me." Anna turned on her arm to stare at him, "We did not just shag. Not even in that office. This was…"

She shuddered and John tried to speak but she put a hand over his mouth. "If you speak I'll never say it." Swallowing, Anna finally managed it, "This was _making love_."

John laughed as Anna lay back, her whole body twitching as if trying to rid herself of the feeling of something crawling over her skin. "Didn't like that did you?"

"No, it's a horrible phrase."

"How'd it taste coming out of your mouth?"

Anna pursed her lips, "Like vinegar…" She grinned at him, "And not nearly as good as you tasted."

John coughed, "You can't do that to me."

"Why not?"

"Because while you can manage multiple orgasms, I can't."

"You just did three in a very short time." Anna flicked hair from his forehead. "You've got good little swimmers."

"I'm just happy I got you four times."

"Well," Anna shrugged, "Like you said, I can have multiple orgasms."

"Want more?"

"Maybe later." Anna lay back on the pillows, closing her eyes. "I haven't done that in awhile and my workout regime wasn't exactly geared toward sex-capades."

"Mine either." John settled next to her, interlacing their fingers. "But I thought we did pretty well."

"Me too." Anna kissed him, "Now sleep or we won't have the energy to move."

* * *

Berlin, 1945

John tapped his fingers against the arm of the chair. The man across from him looked over the letters and the certifications before pushing them to the side. He interlaced his fingers and rested his chin on them to inspect John.

"And why should I let another reporter into our city?"

"Because the world deserves to know what's going on here. Look," John stabbed the desk with a finger. "The world doesn't think much of you right now, that's for sure. But they'll think even less of you if I get back to England and start reporting with what I do know."

"And what do you know, Herr Bates?"

"That you're trying to keep me out, that your guards are bribable and I managed to get this meeting because you're a bottom feeder, and, thirdly, that you've got a lot to hide." John lowered his voice, "Don't think I don't know about the man who was selling human flesh for people to eat."

The man on the other side of the desk paled, "That was a vicious rumor."

"Not according to the woman given the last note to go there." John settled back in his chair. "She told me the whole story and I managed to get the rest of the details with the money I have. Again, a problem with money in a country as wrecked as yours."

"So you'd profit from our desperation, is that it?"

"That must be difficult for you to admit since I know you were wearing military insignia just a short time ago." John bristled, "Don't talk to me about benefiting off desperation. Maybe you haven't seen the destruction you wrought in Poland or on the Croats or in France but I have. I've traveled the length and breadth of the line of devastation caused by this war and I've not got time to bandy words with you. Let me into your country to do my job or I'll do it elsewhere and you'll like what I've got to say even less then."

The man glared at him before grabbing a large stamp and driving it with significant force onto John's passport. He practically flung it and the other papers back at him. "Take your papers and don't let me see you again."

"Oh, I promise you'll see me again." John stood, tucking away his things as calmly as possible. "You'll see my name everywhere as I tell the world what it's like here. And then you'll see the pity the world brings to your devastation. A pity you didn't have on those you destroyed."

"It was war."

"It was unnecessary and now it's over." John picked his bags off the floor. "Have a good day."

He left the office and Talbot peeled himself off the wall to follow him. "I have to say, I've never seen anyone get out of one those that quickly."

"I need you to take me to the local records office." John skipped over the pleasantries, taking the steps in a hurry to reach the line of cars, Talbot guiding him to one. "We've got to track someone down."

"Your wife?" Talbot opened a door and helped John in before climbing into the back as Branson leaned over the seat.

"We may not find her."

"I'm not leaving this city until I do. Either in person or the grave with her name on it." John closed his eyes, taking deep breaths, "I'm not letting her go until I know she's gone. I won't accept it any other way."

"Right then." Branson turned back around, "Records office here we come."


	8. Empire of the Sand

Berlin- 1945

John made a note and then tucked it into his jacket pocket. Talbot turned another page and snorted, "Is this you?"

John looked over and nodded, "Church records."

"Well at least we know you weren't lying about that marriage." Branson noted the page and then flipped through a few more pages. "I think I found something a bit more disturbing."

"What?" Talbot and John leaned over and Branson turned the book.

"It seems the State recognized a marriage between she and someone else less than three months after you were kicked back to England." Branson squinted, "I can't make out the name."

"Alexander Grün." John sat back, "He was Gestapo."

"If he still is…" Talbot clacked his teeth, "He'll be in hiding and she'll be a target."

"At least we know she was alive until the end of the war." Branson shrugged and then jumped when he noticed them looking at him. "The wife of a Gestapo wasn't going to be in any harm. It would've been death to touch her."

"Does it record an address for her?"

"I've got…" Branson shook his head, "It's all German and I don't read German."

"Here." John shifted over and noted the recorded address. "What are the chances they've not moved from that flat?"

"Depends on if the flat even exists still." Talbot shrugged, "The Americans knew how to do their job when it came to dropping enough bombs they hoped to hit the target."

"Then we'll have to pound a bit of pavement." John collected his things and helped put the books back on the cart. "You'll get to see what it's like to do my job now."

"Not like we haven't spent two days combing records with you." Branson huffed, getting his things to follow John and Talbot from the room. "But you lied to us."

"Did I?" John looked back over his shoulder at Branson as Talbot went ahead and opened the doors to their car. "How so?"

"You said you were involved in the Great Arab Revolt but you served at the Somme."

"A man can do both." John climbed into the rear of the car while Branson and Talbot took the front. "Is it so bad I only mentioned one of them?"

"Were you afraid we'd think you were too old?" Talbot snickered, pulling the car into the minimal traffic formed from mostly military vehicles and horse-drawn carts.

"I didn't want to make a thing of it." John leaned over the seat. "Left there."

"Not sure it would've changed anything for us." Branson shifted to allow John to continue guiding Talbot's movements through the city. "You're the one who got us assigned as your attaches so we're not mucking about hunting Nazis."

"We might still do that if we find his wife's new husband." Talbot peeked over at John, "But you're allowed first blows."

"How generous of you."

"I thought so." Talbot pulled to a stop, allowing a cart to pass them. "This is the most depressing thing I've ever seen."

"You'll be even more depressed when I tell you this is what every place looks like after war comes to it." John pointed, "Right at the second corner."

They remained silent as they wove through the shattered and crumbling city. Buildings about them featured holes, collapsed roofs, and even a few tilted on their sides as the foundations struggled to hold up what remained of them. When they finally turned down the final road to the provided address, John blinked at the sight as if this still-standing building were the first of its kind. From the reactions of the other two he noted they recognized the anomaly in a city of fading grandeur.

"This it?"

"Seems to be." John got out of the car and then put his hand on the door Branson tried to open. "I'm going in alone."

"That's not advisable." Talbot leaned over the seat to point up at the building. "What'll you do if Grün's up there?"

"I'll break his jaw and then drop his ass out the window to you." John winked at them and walked into the building. "Remember, I get first blows."

Neither man responded, both grumbling to themselves, but they left him to enter the building alone. John checked the numbers on the first floor against those on the piece of paper in his hand before taking the stairs to the next level. It was two more flights before he found the right floor.

Checking over the doors he knocked on one that looked suspiciously like all the others. Footsteps on the other side of the door had him wringing his hands and trying to swallow past a throat that was now suspiciously dry. And try as he might his face did not appear as relaxed as he wished when the door opened. His face fell at the sight of an old woman with white hair.

"Frau Grün?"

The woman raised an eyebrow and shook her head, pointing down the hall. "She moved there when the war ended."

John craned his head down the hall, frowning before addressing the woman again. "Why?"

"To protect her son." The woman shook her head. "Her husband is a horrible man and they've received threats."

"I'm sure they have." John flexed his jaw, the woman's earlier words running through his mind like a never-ending film reel. "Is he there?"

"I think he's hiding his miserable hide somewhere to avoid the men in other uniforms here to take him away for what he did." The woman spit to the side, "I hope he roasts in Hell."

"I'll keep that in mind." John nodded at her, "Thank you."

"The woman, Frau Grün," John faced the woman, noting the way she tugged her fingers and could not quite meet his gaze. "She's innocent in all of this. We all did things we… Things we regret to survive."

"I know."

He walked down the hallway, pointing to the door as the woman leaned out her own. She nodded and then went back into her flat. The snap of the door helped John find his courage and he brought his knuckles to rap on the wood.

Again, footsteps sounded on the other side of the door and John tensed. His hand at the door froze where it was while the other tightened into a fist. When the door opened his jaw dropped and he and Anna stared at one another.

It took them both a second but she covered her mouth with her hand, choking back a sob. In the next instant he used his still-raised hand to pull her closer and clutched her to his chest. Her arms wrapped around his neck and she clung there for a moment before drawing back. John almost let her go but she used her hands to grab his lapels and kiss him as hard as she could.

John kissed back, cradling her head in his hand and using the other to wrap around her. They only separated when the need for air dotted John's vision with black. Both of them gasped to fill their lungs while their hands refused to move from holding one another. Anna's fingers caressed his face, as if to memorize him or perhaps to map anew the face that only lived in her memory. John's hands slid along her arms to confirm she stood before him.

"John," Her voice caught and all John could do was nod and pull her back into his embrace.

"Mother?" Anna's hands at John's chest pushed so hard she almost toppled him backward but he caught himself in time to see a young boy walking toward them from around the corner of the corridor. From, what John assumed, was another flight of stairs in the building. "Who is this soldier?"

"He's…" Anna struggled to speak, her jaw shifting to find words but they seemed to escape her.

"I'm Captain Bates," John extended his hand to the boy, speaking in German as he waited for the young boy to shake his hand. "I'm here to ask about your father."

"He's not here." The boy shifted forward, offering a bottle of milk to Anna and ignoring John's outstretched hand. "That was all they had."

"Thank you Johann." Anna took the bottle and motioned him inside. "I think you've got work to finish."

He nodded and gave John one last look before walking into the flat. Anna watched him, her hands skidding over the bottle in her grip, and then turned back to John. "Are you really looking for him?"

"I'm sure someone is but I'm not." John covered her fingers with his, remembering the feel of them despite the chill to the bottle in her hands. "I'm here for you."

Anna smiled at him, her eyes filling with tears again. "I knew you'd find me."

"However, whatever, whenever." He whispered back to her, noting the sneaking glances of Johann as he sat at the table and spread work in front of him. "Does he speak English?"

"A little." Anna shrugged, "I've tried to teach him but Alexander…"

"Has he hurt you?" John went to put a hand on Anna's shoulder but caught Johann's eyes and retreated. "Are you alright?"

"Now that you're here I am." Anna took a breath. "And no, he never hurt me."

"Never?"

Anna shook her head, "For all that he did to others, he never hurt me. Especially not after he had a son to give to the Reich."

John nodded, "So he's…"

"No." Anna's fingers grabbed his when John tried to retreat, he head shaking quickly. "It's not what…"

"Mother," They both turned as Johann approached them, holding his workbook. "I need help."

"I'll be right there. Let me finish up with this soldier."

Johann gave John a look and swallowed, attempting English before turning to German in mid-sentence. "Are you here… Did you help to save us?"

"I'd like to think so."

"Then why did you bomb us?"

"To kill all the bad men."

"You killed good people too."

John met Anna's eyes and then knelt down to look Johann in the eye. "That's why war is horrible. Because it kills the good and the bad. We all suffer in war but that's why the good fight back, so they can try and save as many as they can."

"Did you save many?"

"We hope we've saved everyone now that you're Fuhrer is dead."

Johann nodded, moving his book to finally shake John's hand. "Thank you."

He retreated into the flat and Anna shrugged. "I've got to go."

"Can you…" John swallowed as Anna paused, her hand on the door while the other held the bottle close to her. "Can you meet me later?"

"It'll be later, after I finish with work."

"That's fine." John struggled, "We could meet at my flat."

"I shouldn't be near British soldiers." Anna snuck a glance down the corridor. "I don't want the wrong impressions passed around."

"I understand." John nodded. "What if we met somewhere public?"

"I'll meet you outside this building at nine this evening." Anna removed her hand from the door to grip his. "I'm so grateful you came back for me."

"Always." John squeezed her fingers and backed away. "I'll be there."

"I hope so." Anna smiled at him, closing the door.

John returned to the car, climbing into the back as Talbot and Branson both tossed their fags to the ground and stomped them out.

"How'd it go?" Branson turned around in the seat to look at John as Talbot started the car.

"I'll need to be back here by nine." John peeked up at the building. "And we need to find Officer Grün."

"I love tracking people down." Branson deadpanned, turning in his seat. "Another trip to the archives?"

"Not this time."

Talbot nudged Branson with his elbow, "We've got to get rid of the husband or he can't take the girl home."

"I can't take her home anyway." John sighed, "She's the wife of a Nazi. They'll never let her out of the country with his name."

"Then we've just got to denazify her." Talbot caught John's eyes in the mirror. "And I've got a friend that can help us with that."

"You do?"

"You make friends when you're personable." Talbot shrugged, steering through traffic. "And I happen to know one of the American intelligence officers."

"I know a few of them too, what's the difference?" John frowned as Talbot halted at a four-way-stop.

"Because the ones I know are in charge of a little operation they're calling 'Paperclip'." When John's frown continued Talbot turned over his shoulder. "Taking Nazi scientists and bringing them to America."

"I don't want her in America."

"But they'll resettle her with you in England if you give them her scum of a husband." Talbot turned back to the road, driving toward the American section. "You'll see, it'll all work out."

"That's very confident of you."

"I'm a confident guy."

Branson rolled his eyes, "Annoying is a better word."

John did not respond, only spun his ring over his finger.

* * *

Berlin- Present Day

Anna blinked, sounds wafting into her ears. She pushed her head out of the pillow and blinked at the darkness only breaking into a gray. Her fingers caught the edge of the window cover and she noted the tinge of pink on the horizon before catching sight of the clock on the bedside.

With a shrug she went to bury her face in the pillow again but when she hand reached out for John she only met cold mattress. Putting a hand under herself, she turned in the bed and noted the light in the bathroom. Pushing the blankets off herself she shivered in the air and risked a second on the aircon to turn it down so it wasn't blowing the room into a frigid arctic climate.

She padded to the bathroom and pushed the door open to find it empty. Her frown persisted as she investigated the space and found nothing and no one. With a shrug, she advantage of the loo and then a washcloth to her skin to try and address the soreness of vigorous activities she had not had in two years.

Anna sniggered to herself, pulling her hair back and turning the light off before going back to the bed. On her way she saw John coming from the hallway, wrapped only in one of the hotel bathrobes, and stopped when he noticed her. He pointed to his phone and then the bed.

"Did I wake you?"

"I heard something but I think my body woke me." Anna shrugged, sliding back over the sheets toward the side she claimed as hers. "It's what happens when you've trained yourself to notice changes in your immediate environment."

"I forgot," John knocked his palm against his forehead, "I'm dating a soldier."

"Not sure how you could forget that when you've been tailing me for six months in my fatigues."

"They do make your ass look nice."

"Charmer." Anna laid back on the pillows, watching John rid himself of the bathrobe and charge his phone before crawling onto his side of the bed. "Who was on the phone, if I can ask."

"Contact in America."

"About?"

"Operation Paperclip."

"Oh," Anna turned in the bed, giving John a view of her back as she punched a pillow under her head. "I'm not listening to anything that has anything to do with a military operation until my boots hit the sandy dirt of Kandahar. I'll wait until I get there to be regaled with the details of that mission."

"You'd be a little late for it." John's lips kissed over her back but Anna forced herself to remain motionless.

"And why's that?"

"Because Operation Paperclip was what brought German scientists, engineers, and suspected Nazis back to the United States to work in their nuclear programs." His lips brushed the small of her back and Anna flinched when he licked at a scar there. "You never did tell me where you got this from."

"Does it matter?"

"It does when I want to know everything about you." John's hands smoothed over her back, massaging into the muscles there and moving lower and lower until his fingers dug into the flesh of her ass.

"There's not much left to tell about myself." Anna sighed into the sensation of his hands on her skin, opening her legs at his nudge so he could continue the massage down her thighs. "I've told you everything there's to know in all those emails I've written you."

"I'm sure that's not everything."

"Everything that mattered." Anna went to say something else but groaned when John dug his thumbs into her calves. "Why'd you become a journalist when you could be a masseuse?"

"I've only ever wanted to massage one person and I'm doing that right now." His hands sculpted back up to seek out the spot under her shoulder blades. "Based on your reaction, I think my only client would recommend me."

"Usually, yes," Anna's toes curled at the sensation of John's erection resting between the globes of her ass. "But when there's a chance I might get laid afterward I don't think I'd want to recommend you to anyone else."

"Oh you'll get laid." John growled in her ear, leaning over her while pressing down with his hands and his erection. "Just not quite yet."

"Why? Do you have other plans?"

John did not answer with words. Instead he kissed down the line of her spine and over her ass before sucking her folds between his teeth. Anna buried her face in the pillow and moaned as John dragged his tongue through her and then teased into her opening. He kept up the taunting pace, gliding slowly over and around her while his fingers continued to massage into her thighs and ass.

Anna shifted onto her forearms and raised her hips off the bed enough that John's mouth shifted on her. He hummed in his throat, sending the sensation against her, and dragged his mouth down to her clit. There he pulled and nipped until Anna sagged her weight onto her forearms, pressing into the mattress as John adjusted position slightly to get her on her knees so he could reach more of her.

His fingers soon joined, pressing into her and running parallel to the efforts of his tongue as he played back and forth between the two to leave Anna panting into the pillow and writhing under him. Her legs shook slightly but she forced herself to stay spread and even counted at the back of her mind as she tried to time herself in the modified plank position. But none of it mattered when John breached her with three fingers, crooked inside her, and then sucked her clit between his teeth.

She cried out, thrusting her hips toward his face so he could take more of her. And he took as much of her as she gave, fingers and tongue playing over her until Anna's whole body trembled and squirmed. When she finally tipped over the edge, her vision dotted with black and she wondered if she passed out for even a fraction of a second.

But that did not matter a moment later. John's hands, as familiar on her hips as any pair of fatigues, held her steady and thrust into her. Anna almost pushed herself up but one of John's hands moved to the middle of her back and held her in place so he could kiss over her lower back. The snap of his hips against the skin of her ass worked into a beat that kept her at the edge. He waited, her ass cradled between his thighs, and then drew back until he was barely inside her before driving forward to seat himself as deeply inside her as he would reach.

Anna clawed at the sheets, thrusting herself back as much as she could but John held her at the tip, only responding when she whined for him to continue. His hands continued to massage or mold or maneuver until Anna hung in his grip. It was all she could do to chase the rising pleasure before John let it fade back only to ratchet it up higher. Each time he tempted them both to the peak before leaving her moaning into the sheets.

His fingers shifted around, playing over her clit, and Anna broke in a second. The squeeze of her vaginal walls kept him trapped so John thrust forward. His uncompromising drives took her through her second orgasm right to the edge of a third when he hitched up inside her before finally giving himself over to his own.

Anna is not entirely sure how they managed to land back on the bed without toppling into an undignified heap. Although, she grinned to herself as she moved to her back and partly wishing she allowed the aircon to continue its frigid temperature as the sweat on her body beaded and rolled over her, if anyone who held her in any regard saw her in the position she occupied only a moment ago there would be enough indignity for everyone. She laughed a little to herself and then turned to face John to share the joke but he was gone from the bed.

A tilt of her head had John rummaging around in his suitcase for something and Anna frowned, tipping herself onto a forearm as she stretched her legs. "Anyone would think you don't actually want to share a bed with me."

"That's not even the slightest bit true." John said over his shoulder, a little gasp of discovery echoing around the room as he left the suitcase and came back to climb onto the bed next to her. "Especially since this bed, as you said, is like a cloud."

"It's going to make going back to a cot miserable."

"Maybe not so miserable."

Anna frowned, laying back into her pillow. "What would make it not miserable?"

"This." John pulled a box forward and opened it. Even in the dim light the simple band, with the diamond glinting there, caught her eye. Anna covered her mouth and looked up at John as he swallowed to continue. "I want to marry you, Anna May Smith."

"What?"

John blinked at her, examining the ring and then meeting her gaze again. "I want to marry you."

"I got that part so let me rephrase my question." Anna took a breath. "Why?"

"Why?" John repeated and then tried to retract his hand holding the ring as if he could recover everything he just said. "I just thought-"

"John," Anna caught his wrist, stopping his retreat. "I wasn't asking why you want to marry me. I was asking why do you want to marry me now."

"Because…" John took a breath, "You're about to go back to a war zone for another six months. I'm about to go… wherever there's a story and while that could be somewhere as boring as Bognor Regis it could also be Bosnia or Beirut, or Bangladesh or Belfast or Barcelona or…"

"I get it." Anna smiled at him, stopping his rant. "And I don't need you to prove how intelligent you are by naming off all the cities in the world that start with 'B' and could be your next potential stops."

"Alright." John swallowed, shuffling on the bed as he stayed on his knees and Anna crossed her legs in front of him. "I want to marry you, right now if I could, because I'm not going to allow you to go back without me. We've been… The equivalent of together for two years now and I can't go bear the idea that I might have to be on the sidelines of your life anymore without the right to be kept informed if something happened to you."

"Nothing's going to happen to me."

"Maybe not, and I pray to God nothing will, but I don't want to risk that anything happens to you or to me while we're apart without the right to know if anything does happen." He took another breath, "I want to be there for you in whatever way that is and, for right now, it's about knowing we're going to be together through it all."

Anna put her hands on either side of his face, his hands having dropped to rest between his knees. "Did you plan this whole trip to propose to me?"

"No." John shook his head, "But I did book this room to propose to you."

"How romantic." Anna kissed him, pulling at his lips until he tried to take control of the kiss before she pulled back to leave him wanting more. "And the answer, by the way, is yes."

"Yes?"

"Yes." She grinned, "How fast could you find someone to marry us?"

"I've got another three weeks in Kandahar…" John winked, "I'm sure Robert'll give you permission if he gets to officiate."

"He would." Anna held out her left hand, "If you'd do the honors, Mr. Bates."

"Gladly, future Mrs. Bates." John slid the ring onto her finger and then used his leverage to kiss there. "Unless you want me to be Mr. Smith."

"So we'd be Dr. and Mr. Smith?" Anna looped her arms around his neck, her fingers immediately going to play with the ring. "I don't know. You're the famous reporter, John Bates, are you sure you can handle being married?"

"I could be your arm candy." John's hands ran over her sides, tickling and then stroking toward her breasts. "But since we've not got much time here, I think we need to use it wisely."

"What did you have in mind?"

"The shower." John tugged her toward him, taking her into his arms and walking into the bathroom. "We've got more jets in here than we need and I think we should use them all."

"I quite agree." Anna tried to get down but John held her fast. "Is this going to be a pattern in our marriage?"

"What?"

"You trying to assert dominance."

"No." John shook his head and stepped into the shower, tipping the heads to on with his elbow. "I just want to treat you like the queen you are and that requires you allow me the opportunity to treat you."

"Then you might need to rethink marrying me." Anna slipped loosed, "Because I'm no one's damsel in distress. If there's a problem then I rescue my own damn self."

"I didn't say damsel." John steered them under the water, "And I've no doubt you'd rescue my damn self too."

"Then what?"

"I," John adjusted the water and then moved them under the spray. "Want to adore you every minute of every day and that might require that you accept my adoration."

"Like carrying me across the threshold."

"I'll let you kick the door in first." John teased and then bent his head to kiss her. He pulled away a moment later, "Remember the promise I made you about the shower?"

"Yes."

John sank down to his knees on the shower floor and Anna wove her fingers into his hair as he spread her legs to lick at her. Like before, he showed no restraint when it came to finding every crevice and cranny that left her crying out and quivering. Each motion sent her fingers deeper into his hair until she was sure there would be bloody marks all over his scalp. But John continued until she broke and sagged into his waiting arms.

"The steam." She breathed and John frowned at her. Anna laughed, pulling his head closer so she could kiss him and remove her taste to get at his. "You said the steam would be from how hot I am."

"You are hot."

"I'm about to get hotter." Anna pressed at his shoulder, not stopping until John's back hit the wall. Then she pushed him down to sit on the ledge there while she took her turn on her knees. She rubbed over the indentations from the tile on his legs as she wrapped her lips around his rising erection.

"Anna?"

It took all of her willpower not to listen when he called out to her. But with each motion of her tongue to lick over him, chasing the water down him, and then trying to take him as deeply as possible, Anna could not afford to be distracted. Instead she swallowed around him, massaged his legs as he had what seemed like a lifetime of sensual experience ago, and then maneuvered her fingers over his sack until he grunted.

His hips bucked into her grip and Anna only smiled around him. The scrape of her teeth had him quivering and squirming but she pressed her thumb into a pressure point to keep him from stopping her as she sucked him to the edge. And then over the edge to swallow him down.

John's head hit the back wall, his body sagging in place, as Anna tipped herself back under the stream. She rose, her knees berating her decision, but washed over herself and then John as he tried to regain his strength. His hands caught hers and he pulled her close to kiss her.

"I'm ready for the next part." He whispered and Anna's brow furrowed.

The water shut off and John toweled them both dry, snapping the towel from her grip when she tried to control the action. Anna surrendered to his plan and jumped into his hold as he carried her back to the bed. He laid her over it and the vague promise came back to her.

"Now that you're spread over the bed," John manipulated her limbs until she was as comfortable as she needed to be and as open as he wanted. "I'm going to close my eyes and learn you with my tongue."

John stayed true to his word and Anna noted, even in the haze of the orgasm he left there, he did not open his eyes until their lips part. But when he entered her again, responding to the lift of her hips and the clutch of her hands, his eyes never left hers. Even when Anna rolled her eyes back into her head at the final orgasm he wrung from her oversaturated body, John's gaze did not waver.

When he came, leaving Anna feeling sated and satisfied beyond any comprehension she ever had of the feeling, John settled them on the bed. He lay partially on his side so his fingers could run through her drying hair. Anna curled toward him, keeping enough distance to watch his face, and they dozed with her ring glinting between them until their alarm sounded.


	9. A Little Fall of Rain

Berlin- 1945

Talbot raised a hand in greeting as the group at a back table called over to them. John and Branson kept close, avoiding the carousing soldiers and the women with them. Women, John suspected, where there for the money they could get for whatever favors they had to perform to feed their starving families. He shuddered and followed Talbot to the table.

"John, Tom, let me introduce you to a friend from training in England, Jack Ross." Talbot gestured to a black man sitting between two other officers, all of whom stood up so they could shake hands. "He's the one liaising with the SOE here to try and find all the Nazis."

"Can't say your side hasn't been generous in their efforts." Ross nodded at them, motioning to the empty chairs for the three newcomers to take. "Blake and Napier here've been beyond helpful."

"We're all just doing our part." Blake, the one with the darker hair of the two other British officers, shook hands with the new trio before Napier took his turn. "Although I'm wondering what we can do for the famed John Bates."

"About as much as I can do for you, I'm sure." John turned to Ross, "Talbot here told me about something you're doing called 'Paperclip'."

Ross stopped, taping the ash from a fag into a tray. "I do hope you're not too exhausted digging through rubble in this city that you're already turning to exposing an operation still in progress."

"This is personal, not professional."

"Got yourself a little side woman you want to take back with you so you're bed's not lonely?" Ross motioned to the other officers with the women on their legs in the room. "Get in line. They've all got someone they want to make their war bride or their mistress in their cookie cutter homes. I've not got time to tell you how ridiculous it is."

"It's not like that."

"It never is." Ross blew out a stream of smoke and sat back in his chair. "What makes your woman different?"

"I married her in nineteen-thirty-nine." John held up his hand and Ross pulled a face but then shrugged.

"Forgive what'll sound callous, because it is, but you might have to think about living in whatever bombed out hovel she's got here until you can move back to England. At the rate things like this are going, everyone marrying everyone to try and get around the restrictions."

"Her husband's a Nazi."

Ross, Blake, and Napier all exchanged looks before Ross leaned forward. "What's his name?"

"Alexander Grün."

The trio put their heads together, muttering back and forth as Napier thumbed hurriedly through a notebook he pulled from a pocket. After a moment he found the name and Blake pulled a file from a case under the table. They discussed it another moment before opening the file and showing John the contents. Ross's finger tapped on the photograph they had.

"This man?"

John only needed a moment to nod, "That's him."

"Where did you see him?"

"Last? Watching the newspaper where I worked when I worked here." John hurried to continue when the other three men all groaned. "But I've made contact with his wife and she might know where he is. If I can get the information and pass it on to you I want assurances you can help denazify her."

"You think we're going to give you denazification papers for a song?" Ross laughed, "It's more complicated than that."

"How?" John watched them, the color in his cheeks rising. "Tell me how it's more complicated and maybe I can simplify it for you."

"Officer Grün was part of a top secret program after he proved himself a capable Jew killer." Blake shuddered, "The man is a monster and they used him to frighten and pressure a number of German scientists they forced into their nuclear program."

"The Nazis don't have a nuclear program." Branson argued but Napier shook his head.

"They wanted one and we're trying to get those scientists before Stalin can."

"I thought we were all allies." Branson went to say but Blake shook his head.

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend but now the enemy's defeated we've got to make sure we don't arm our future enemies."

"What does this have to do with Grün?" John cut off their conversation, focusing on Ross.

"He knows the whereabouts of a few of the top scientists. People they're trying to hide from us." Ross bit the inside of his cheek. "If we don't get to them first then the Soviets do and they won't ask questions. They'll take whomever'll go, kill the rest, and burn everything else down."

"Then what do you need?"

"We need Grün so he can tell us where they're stashed so we get them first." Ross gave a wry smile. "Tell me, Mr. Bates, who do you trust with the bomb, really?"

"It's a difficult decision." John did not drop his gaze. "The country that dropped two of them on a sovereign nation or the country willing to kill its own citizens to succeed."

"War is ugly, Mr. Bates."

"It's _Captain_ Bates and you don't need to lecture me on the troubles of war. I've fought in three of them." John took a breath and waited a beat. "Mr. Ross-"

"Major."

"Major Ross, I'm getting my wife and her son out of Germany. I can either do that to the benefit of your government and get rid of a despicable human being in the same blow or I can find another way that uses contacts I'm sure you'd rather see in prison. The choice is yours."

Ross held his gaze for another moment and then laughed, showing all of his gleaming white teeth. "Let me buy you a drink, Captain, and we'll discuss the particulars."

John gave his hand for Ross to shake, which he did with gusto. "I'm all ears."

* * *

Kandahar- Present Day

Anna put on her sunglasses and snapped into a salute at the sight of General Crawley. He returned the motion and Anna dropped her hand, the other still holding onto her duffle. "How are you sir?"

"Better now that you're back." He grumbled and Anna caught the frown turning down the sides of his mouth. "The new doctor's… not working out like we hoped."

"We can't afford to lose him, sir."

"I didn't…" General Crawley stopped himself, shaking John's hand as he joined them.

Anna bit down on her lip, catching sight of John's jacket billowing to expose the black shirt that still wrinkled as if someone had used it for a secure hold. She turned away from them, her fingers flexing on the handles of her duffle so the ring there rubbed against the nylon material. It took three calls of her name to bring her back to the present.

"Sir?"

"John's telling me you've got news to share with me." General Crawley's brow furrowed in a way that almost kept Anna quiet. "Care to enlighten me?"

"I need to request permission for the base chaplain to marry us." Anna switched the hand on her duffle to hold up the ring. "We've not got much time."

General Crawley's jaw could only have dropped faster if the velocity and direction of the earth suddenly changed. "Excuse me?"

"We've got something we should probably tell you." Anna looked around the tarmac, "But not here."

"I'd think not." He marched them to his office, Anna and John exchanging looks before shivering in concert at a blast of cold air.

"I should've taken a coat. I forgot it gets cold here."

"Mine's probably not what I'll need in a minute." Anna muttered back at John. "He'll be so pissed."

"We were nothing but professional on duty."

"It's the idea that we pulled anything over on him." Anna allowed John to open the door and left her duffle with his suitcase outside General Crawley's office. She winced at the raised eyebrows of Carson before she and John went into the office.

"Close the door." General Crawley took his seat and Anna took 'at-attention- pose while John stood off her left arm. "I want to know one thing before you give me any details."

"Sir?"

"In the six months he's been shadowing you for this article, have you engaged in any inappropriate behavior?"

"No sir." Anna kept her focus forward, avoiding John's eyes and General Crawley's. "We've been nothing but the picture of professionalism in our everyday engagements."

"Engagements…" General Crawley laughed, "What a word to choose."

"Sir, Mr. Bates and I met one another in Bangkok two years ago."

General Crawley blinked, "On that trip where Gwen was the one telling me my daughter got herself blackout drunk?"

"With all due respect, sir, Mary never passed out. She broke down into tears and had a very heartfelt conversation with her now husband about something that happened a long time ago. She was never close to blacking out."

"She drank enough to intoxicate herself."

"That's not a crime, sir." Anna waited and then cleared her throat to continue. "Mr. Bates came to my unintended rescue when he helped me get away from someone trying to accost me near…"

"Near?" General Crawley prompted and Anna swallowed back her dissatisfaction.

"Near the red light district."

"Excuse me?"

"It was a dare, sir. I was there for a bachelorette party."

"You took my daughter to the red light district?"

"No sir." Anna frowned, meeting General Crawley's eyes for the first time. "Lieutenant Dawson escorted Mary back to the hotel when she indicated she was feeling poorly and I completed the dare on my own."

"Why do I not feel better?"

"If you've not been taking your ulcer medication then-"

"I don't need lip from you." General Crawley snapped and Anna shut her mouth. He turned to John, "Anything you want to add?"

"Only that Major Smith and I had a lovely time for the two days we spent in Bangkok and hen continued to email one another afterward. We visited once while I was in Manchester and she was back at Harrogate but when you brought her here six months ago that was the first time we'd seen one another in a year."

"And you'd swear to me on our service together that nothing happened between you two while you've been on base?"

"Despite the desire, we've been celibate as monks." John cringed, "Can I still say that?"

General Crawley shut his eyes, grinding his knuckles into the skin of his forehead. "You're giving me a migraine."

"There's something for that sir." Anna risked and then turned her focus to the back of General Crawley's wall at the glimpse of his glare.

"Was this little holiday leave to Berlin part of a plan to seduce one another?"

"The seduction itself didn't take much planning." John shrugged, "It was really easy."

General Crawley addressed Anna, "Did you plan your holiday for that reason?"

"My leave was for personal reasons, sir, which is allowed and not subject for speculation unless I acted in violation of my uniform, which I didn't." Anna finally met his eyes again. "I took leave because I was worked to the bone and I wanted to take Mr. Bates up on the offer he extended."

"To propose?"

"I thought we were just going to look through some archives together."

"You didn't know he planned to propose?"

"It'd have been a pretty shit proposal if the surprise was gone." Anna finally looked toward John, wanting nothing more than to intertwine their fingers but keeping her position steady. "But I did say yes, sir."

"The ring's on your finger so I'd assume you did." General Crawley finally stood and Anna snapped her gaze back to the point above his head. "John's still here for another three weeks. That means you'll have to wait until his assignment is officially over to get married because I won't have any talk on this base of impropriety. Am I understood?"

"Yes sir."

General Crawley turned to John, "That means she sleeps in her quarters and you don't."

"I know what it means Robert."

"Good." He sighed, "And here I was thinking the only things giving me gray hairs at this point would be my children."

"Sorry?" John offered but General Crawley only shook his head.

"You're back on duty tomorrow, Major, and I expect you to be a hundred percent focused. If not I'll have you transferred back to Harrogate or somewhere else I think might be unpleasant."

"I'm a professional sir."

"Good. Dismissed."

Anna snapped her salute and waited for General Crawley to return it before leaving his office. She grabbed for her duffle but John beat her to it. When she tried to glare at him, John only shrugged and made as if to kiss her before stopping himself. "If I can't kiss you then I'm going to carry your bag."

"You're ridiculous."

"I'll still let you kick the door in, remember." John followed Anna to her quarters, leaving the duffle on her bed and sneaking a quick kiss as his fingers moved over the ring on her finger. "This looks good on you."

"Too bad I'll have to put it on a chain since I can't have it showing."

"Then isn't it a good thing I got you this for all your surgeries?" John dangled a thin leather strap between his fingers. "Thought you might need something like this."

"How'd you know?" Anna took it, sliding her ring onto it and slipping it under her clothes.

"I was married once, remember?" John shrugged, "I used to dangle my wedding ring on something similar."

"Was that the same one you had melted down when it all ended?"

"You make me sound so petty."

"We can all be a little petty." Anna tipped forward, kissing him with her hands on either side of his face. "But I like you the way you are so I'm not too bothered by it."

"I'd hope not." His finger rubbed over her now bare finger before kissing her knuckles. "You're everything to me."

"And you're everything to me." Anna snuck one last kiss before pushing him away. "I don't want General Crawley thinking we're ignoring his orders already."

"Then you've got plans to ignore his orders?"

"His restrictions are that we can't get married until your assignment's finished and you can't sleep in my quarters." Anna grinned, "There are loopholes for a reason."

"If we risk them we might lose them."

"Maybe." Anna shrugged, "But it'd be fun to test the limits wouldn't it?"

"Always." John kissed her and then ducked from the room.

Anna smiled to herself, unzipping her back, and starting to arrange her things in her locker when someone slapped their hand on the side of the wall. She turned and grinned when she saw Gwen. "I hope General Crawley didn't call you in about Bangkok."

"Even if he did I didn't see anything so I can't say anything." Gwen took a seat on Anna's bed. "Did you have to tell him?"

"If I was going to explain this then yes." Anna pulled the ring out and stood still as Gwen jumped to her feet and squealed with glee when she saw the ring.

"He proposed to you?"

"Last night." Anna waited for Gwen's investigation to finish and then tucked the ring away. "It was rather romantic."

"Explains why you're moving a little stiffly." Gwen ribbed but Anna ignored her, continuing to put things away.

"I've been cramped in a plane for a bit."

"And having mad crazy sex I'd guess."

"It's not mad crazy." Anna folded her duffle and stuffed it into her locker. "More than I've had in awhile but not mad crazy."

"I guess we've all got to learn somehow." Gwen took a breath, "I should probably warn you about the new doctor though."

"Why?" Anna's eyes narrowed. "I was gone for a week, what could he've ruined?"

"Oh no, he's impeccable. His accent makes it a bit difficult for some of the translators but we're getting his Irish trimmed back a bit." Gwen shrugged, "It's more… He and Sybil hit it off."

"And that's a problem?"

"He's a civilian and so he's not too chuffed about all the rules. He keeps all the ones he finds important, and maintains a really professional attitude about the everything when in surgery, but he's… He's a bit flagrant about what he thinks are useless rules."

"Like?"

"Fraternization." Gwen cringed, "He's not too into the idea that he can't have officers and enlisted in the same places. And he's made it no secret that he fancies Sybil."

"That's only my problem if he's harassing her."

"It'll be a bigger problem if he doesn't knock it off because the General knocks his head off." Gwen stood, "It's… I'm glad you're back so you can try and help him get his head around some ground rules."

"If he's not taking to the rules already in place-"

"It'll be different when you're giving them than taking the General's bluster."

Anna lifted a shoulder, "I guess that's fair."

"Just rest up and be ready for tomorrow. We're hitting the ground running and it's only getting worse now that it's getting colder."

"Tell me about it." Anna paused, "Any more information or cases related to our victims?"

"Nothing so far but I don't think that's the kind of news we want in either direction."

"Probably not." Anna rolled her shoulders. "I'll be over at the office in a minute. Just to look over the notes and papers, not to work. I need to get up to speed and if I don't work then I'll fall asleep and my whole sleep schedule'll be ruined."

"Not to mention you're back on a cot, alone, and with a wrecked schedule already."

"I'm not dignifying that with a response." Anna pointed at the door, "Go on. And don't tell anyone, it's a secret."

"What's a secret?" Gwen winked and then vanished.

* * *

Berlin- 1945

John paced the area, waving off Branson and Talbot as they made another circuit. Branson nodded and steered the car to the other side of the street and parked it, giving them a good view of the alley and the surrounding buildings. He sighed, pacing back down the alley and turning when he heard the sound of heels on the pavement.

Anna stood there, holding a shawl over her shoulders, and smiled at him. Without a second thought he went to her, wrapping his arms around her so they could embrace. Her fingers clutched at him, pulling herself closer to him as they both breathed in the scents that were inherently the other. After a moment he let his arms loosen and Anna pulled back.

"I'm sorry." He hurried to say but she put her hand over his mouth.

"Only English."

He nodded and took a breath, "I've a way to get you, and Johann, out of Berlin."

"To the countryside?"

"To England." John lowered his voice as Anna's eyes widened. "It comes with contingencies but we can get over those."

"What kind of contingencies?"

"We'll have to find your husband and hand him over to the Americans." John shook his head, "He was the head of a-"

"The scientists." Anna nodded and John blinked at her. "He's with them most days. He only stops by the flat when the lights are off for food and updates. I barely see him."

"Then you know where he is?"

"No and I can't guarantee when he'll be back but I could tell you the flat across from mine has been empty since the family living there started to make their way to Italy, trying to escape the bombing."

"You're offering us a place to watch for him?"

Anna nodded, "It's the least I can do."

"Anna," John took her hands, "You shouldn't have to do anything. I should've gotten you out when I had the chance."

"We both knew you couldn't." Anna kissed his fingers. "But I loved you for trying."

John nodded, staring at her until he shook himself. "Grün won't be part of the deal. He'll not get papers to denazify him."

"Good."

"What will Johann say to that?" Anna frowned and John hurried to explain. "He's his father and he-"

"Alexander's not Johann's father." Anna interrupted and John stopped. "Johann's yours, John."

"What?"

"I married Alexander to hide the pregnancy." Anna took a shuddering breath. "It kept us both safe. He looks enough like a combination of Alexander and I to fool him but Johann's your son, John."

A crack of lightning sounded with a rumble of thunder and John urged them under an awning in the alley, blocking them from view. "And you've kept it to yourself all this time?"

"I had to." Anna put her hand to John's face. "Every time I looked at him I saw you and it made my heart ache."

"I'm so sorry." He put his hand over hers and they stared at one another a moment before they touched.

It was like someone lit a spark. Her hands framed his face and he lifted her into his arms. Their lips touched and they tried to drink the other or breathe them until their lungs screamed for real air. But even then they only broke for seconds to pant and gasp while they rubbed and moved over one another.

John pivoted them, putting Anna's back to the wall, and lifted her with a motion made easier by the fact he could barely feel if he had legs. Hers wrapped around his waist, holding him close to her as her tongue sought all the crevices and corners of his mouth. Each brush of their fingers or lips on skin drove John closer and closer to mad with relief and excitement and joy.

She spread her hands over his chest, feeling through his uniform for his skin and eventually settling for opening his trousers. Her fingers taunted near his rising erection and John responded by rucking up her skirt to find her skin. His calloused hands rasped over her skin in what he might consider a violation of her beauty but Anna keened into the sensations before matching the sound with an unrestrained whimper as he teethed at her neck.

They fumbled and grasped for one another until John finally slicked his fingers through her folds. Anna's fingers clenched in the material of his uniform and her head went back to the wall, exposing her neck to him. John laid his plan to tease and taunt her between the care of his lips over her neck and his fingers stroking her from one end to the other. When he trailed a path to her breasts he did not even open her blouse, just mouthed her through the dampening fabric to bite and tease until she cried out.

Her walls clung around his fingers while his thumb flicked at her clit and Anna broke in a moment. Wrapping an arm around his shoulders, she left his uniform rumpled and crunched, while her other hand finally finished exposing his erection to the air. John barely had a moment to think before Anna wrapped her hand around him and stroked before squeezing.

He buried his reaction between her breasts, groaning as he rutted into her waiting hand. His own fumbled with her knickers, puling them to the side and perhaps even tearing them if he heard correctly over the beat of blood in his ears, before he thrust forward. Anna tightened her legs around his waist to take him as deeply inside her as she could manage.

They stayed still, both breathing hard enough to press their chests into the other, and finally looked at one another. John raised a hand to her face, running his fingers slowly over her skin, and kissed her as gently as possible. Anna ran a hand through his soaked hair, sending droplets to further dampen his collar as the rain broke through the torn awning above them to drench them both.

But none of it mattered. All that mattered was the movements between them. The frenetic energy of a moment ago dissipated to a gentle friction that kept them close and connected. Even with the chill, the rain, and the lingering reality of the uniform he wore or the child in the building above them or her Nazi husband, they maintained their pace until Anna clenched her walls around him.

Her whispered words, in German, licked against his ear as he allowed the frenzy to take them over. Each motion drew sounds from her that only made John want to move faster, strike harder, and take them higher. And eventually she fell over the edge again, the cling of her walls around him sending him into his own climax.

His hand dug into the brick wall, slick with water and grime but stable enough until Anna's legs could disentangle themselves from around him. He helped her to the ground, restoring their appearance as much as they could, and bent to kiss her again. She sank into it, holding him close before stepping away.

"He just came last week so he won't be back for another few days, at least."

"Right," John nodded, trying to get his mind back on the task at hand. "Do you know what he's doing with the scientists?"

"Just keeping them trapped, as far as I know." She shrugged, "He's never told me anything about what he does and I haven't asked."

"I wouldn't think-"

"Because if I ask what he's done then he'll ask what I've done and I couldn't…" Anna stopped herself. "That's for another time."

"Yes." John held her close, "We'll have time for all of that."

"Just not now." Anna extracted herself, kissing him one final time before backing away. "The flat right across from mine is the empty one. I'd move your people in there tomorrow and keep a watch for Alexander. I'll put something on my door as a sign."

"That'll be good."

"I hope so." Anna went to touch him again but stopped herself.

"What's wrong?"

"If I touch you then I won't be able to let you go."

"You don't have to let me go."

"For now I do or we'll never be together, not really." Anna nodded toward the building. "I need to get Johann in bed before he gets worried."

"Got yourself a brooder so you?"

"He's many things that remind me of you." Anna smiled, "And many more things of his own."

"I can't wait to meet him."

"You will." Anna returned to her building and John waited a moment, looking for a light in her window, before leaving.

He climbed into the car, soaked to the bone and shivering, to see Talbot and Branson grinning at him. "What?"

"Multitasking?"

"We've got a place to wait for Grün." John pointed, "Let's get me somewhere I can rinse, change clothes, and start plans for our trap."

"Nazi catchers," Branson started up the car, "What a reversal for them it must be. On the other end of the knife, as it were."

"As it were."


	10. My Source Knows What You Did in the Dark

Kandahar, Present Day

Anna did not look up from the file as someone knocked on her door, "Come in."

"You wanted to see me?" She glanced up to see a brunette man standing at her desk. "Lieutenant Dawson said-"

"Yes." Anna closed the file and stood, extending her hand. "Sorry I didn't meet you yesterday but I was in a bit of a rush just getting back from leave."

"And I had three surgeries so I don't take any offence."

"Good to hear." Anna took her hand back as he finished the firm handshake. "And I hope, Doctor Branson, we can find a way to meet in the middle in terms of those surgeries we're both doing."

"Tom."

"Sorry?"

"Call me Tom, please." He pointed to the chair and Anna nodded, retaking her own as he shuddered. "Hard as I worked to get the title, I'm only 'Doctor Branson' officially and I'd like to feel we're not on guard with one another."

"I'd like that too." Anna sighed, "I'll be nice to have another set of qualified hands and eyes on this job."

"Especially with the training program they're starting to get more of the locals aiding us." Tom shrugged, "I think there's a lot of potential but it'll be a lot of work just to get it going to the point we can take off the training wheels."

"I know what you mean but it was something Doctor Clarkson thought would be the best overall."

"I quite agree Permanent change only happens when the people in the area are fully invested in the work. It has to be them that builds up the area of anything we do is of no use." Tom grinned, "But I don't think you called me in here to discuss my philosophy for long-term stabilization in the place where empires come to die."

"No, I didn't." Anna put her fingers together, "I've heard you're not too popular with the military staff."

"Can't say I am really but I've never been one for epaulettes and lapel pins."

"And I respect that, to each their own as I was taught."

"I've got nothing against those who wear them, just the society who demands their absolute adherence to them."

"That's something I think we need to address." Anna interlaced her fingers to drop her hands as a unit to her desktop, "You are aware this is an army base, yes?"

"Of course."

"And without seeming like I'm appealing to those pins on my lapel, I don't want to have to repeat this reminder that because of our location you'll have to accept there's a level of professionalism and decorum that comes with following official procedures as laid out by our military counterparts." Anna paused, "Do you understand what that all means?"

"I can define all those words for you but I've got a feeling you're talking about something more than the dictionary."

"I am."

"Then I have to ask," Tom frowned, "Am I in trouble?"

"No."

"So why the, to use one of your phrases, 'dressing down'? Did I do something inappropriate?"

"Not as yet but this is more me trying to prevent you getting into trouble with General Crawley."

"Right," Tom huffed, "Brass Boots himself."

"Some respect for my commanding officer, if you please."

"Sorry," He cringed, rubbing at the back of his neck. "It's just… He's got a bee in his bonnet about everything and it drives me up the wall."

"It doesn't stop the reality that we're here under his orders and we've got to respect the chain of command. You may not work directly for him but you use the supplies he orders, the base he commands, and the equipment he keeps available as part of an ongoing mission." Anna sighed, "I'm not here to reprimand what I've been told is astoundingly good work. And I don't want to crush what I think is a very vibrantly Irish spirit but I do need to remind you that there are rules and regulations we're expecting everyone to follow… epaulettes or no."

"Anything in particular spark this discussion?"

"General Crawley's a very 'by the books' kind of man, as you've already gathered. That means he's not partial to his daughter, one of my nurses, carrying on with you in what could be construed as a conflict of medical interest."

"Sure it's not that he doesn't want her associating with an Irish socialist when he's got that uniformed jack-boot Grey for her approval?"

"As much as I think he'd prefer she marry within the uniform, General Crawley's not an idiot and even he knows that Captain Grey is, in respect of his uniform and his command, not right for Sybil."

"He's an ass."

"He forgot to pack his manners and I'll leave it at that."

Tom winked at her, "Speak no evil eh?"

"I try to respect the fact that no matter how he got here, he could get caught by an IED like any of us and I'd rather not have bad feelings about him when I'm trying to sow intestine back into his chest cavity."

"Seems a good practice."

"It's done me well so far." Anna let her fingers drop, "Can I have your word then, Tom, that you'll keep any kind of fraternization to the off hours and, even then, restrain yourself?"

"I'll obey all the rules. I may be a bit difficult but I'm a prankster, not a rule breaker or an idiot."

"Both things I'd like to hear." Anna shook his hand again. "And I truly am glad you're on board. It'll take a load off my mind."

"And your hands I'd imagine." Tom nodded toward her neck as their shake broke, "Congratulations I think?"

"Think?" Anna narrowed her eyes, "I don't understand."

"It looks like you've got a ring hanging from that line there and if the side comment Lieutenant Dawson made the other day is true then you're engaged, yes?"

"Yes." Anna pulled the string to show the ring. "It's about two days old."

"Fresh then?"

"Very." Anna slipped it more securely under her uniform. "Still getting used to the idea that someone's made me this insanely happy."

"Then I'm happy for you. Although…"

"Although what?"

"It's just…" Tom fidgeted, "It's not my place to say."

"I thought we were trying for a relationship built around the idea that we'll be honest with one another?"

"Then this is what I'll say." Tom cleared his throat dramatically, "Who'd you find worth marrying in this sandbox?"

"Since I found him before 'this sandbox' I think I picked a good one." Anna walked with Tom to the door and pushed it open to show John sitting with a laptop and a frown. "Have you met our resident journalist?"

"Can't say I've had the pleasure but I've heard General Crawley absolutely raves about him. Good things, unlike what he says about the bottom-feeders who live in the city." Tom extended a hand and John hurried to move his laptop to a chair and stand to return the gesture. "You're not spending much time with the others are you?"

"I'm not here to break a story. I already cut my teeth so I don't need any of that guerilla filmmaking stuff." John dropped his hands to nod at Tom. "So you're the new doctor?"

"New here but I've cut my teeth on some high-profile things of my own."

"Then I'm sure you'll fit right in here where the world can turn to Hell in an instant."

"You served too?"

"It's how I met General Crawley."

Tom shrugged, "I hope it's not too disrespectful to say I think you got the better end of the deal when you left to do what you do."

"Not one for the establishment are you?"

"I don't like the idea of people living generations deep in roles that steep them away from the needs of the everyman."

John gave a shrug of his own. "Then I think you've underestimated the General. He's a hard-ass, make no mistake, but he's got the best sense of noblesse oblige I've ever seen."

Tom paused, narrowing his eyes as if to study the sincerity in John's statement before nodding. "I'll take your word for it."

"You'll be surprised what could happen if you do."

"I'm sure I will." Tom turned to Anna. "I'd better get some shut eye before tomorrow's operation. Need my senses as sharp as I need my fingers to be dexterous."

"Then get off to sleep." Anna waved him off, "And thank you Tom, for being willing to give it a go."

"I like you, Doctor Smith, and I think-"

"Anna."

"Sorry?"

"If we're going to be on a first name basis here then it'll go both ways."

Tom smiled, "Alright then, Anna, I respect what you've done here and I don't want to bring any of it tumbling down. You've got my word that I'll be squeaky clean as long as I'm here."

"Then we'll continue to be friends." Anna waited until Tom vanished down another hallway before turning to John. "What's got you turning up here?"

"Can't I come to say 'hello' to my fiancé?"

"Only if you promise to tell me that your cot was as uncomfortable as mine." Anna put a fist to her back, digging her knuckles into the muscles there. "I think that bed ruined me."

"Should I've sprung for the hostel so couples from America, Sweden, and Libya could've heard our celebration of the engagement?"

Anna swatted at him, "Now you're just being mean."

John shrugged, "I'm here because I've got a line of meetings scheduled with my contacts. They'll take the introductions so you can get them on your side with your investigation."

"They've agreed to help?"

"Thus far they've agreed to meet with us." John cringed, "I can't promise much more beyond that I'm afraid."

"It's enough for now." Anna shoved her hands into the pockets of her white coat. "I could kiss you if I wasn't worried about raising the General's blood pressure."

John made a show of looking around, "He's not around."

"I'd rather not tempt fate."

"Kissing me's not going to tempt fate." John dipped his head to whisper in her ear. "Tempting fate would be me telling you I want to take you on your desk."

"You're the worst." Anna shivered, turning to head to kiss his lips quickly and then pulled away. "Let that be enough for now. I don't want to miss those meetings."

"You'll need to change."

Anna gestured to her uniform and the coat. "This not good enough?"

"I don't think they'll talk to you as readily if they know you're military."

"I don't have much else to change into."

"Whatever you chose, keep it simple and remember a scarf for your hair." John pointed back to his laptop. "I'll wait here."

"Those chairs won't do your back any favors."

"But it's the best wifi." John took his laptop back, pivoting back into his seat. "I've spent a long enough time working out the spots with the best signal so I don't have to slum it back in the reporters tent."

"Don't like the heat?"

"Not a fan of the company." John waved her off. "Go on, before we're late."

Anna hurried back to her quarters, digging through her things to find something that did not immediately set off alarm bells. It took a bit of work but eventually she found something and wrapped a scarf over her hair to keep it contained. She came back just as John closed the lid to his laptop and buried it in a bag by his feet.

"Good enough?" Anna spread her arms and John shrugged.

"It'll have to do."

"You make it sound like I've a wardrobe full of options. Eighty percent of what I've got to wear is standard issue and another ten percent is all sleepwear." Anna pulled at the string around her neck. "But it's what I've got."

"Maybe I should've warned you to bring clothes for undercover work." John swung the strap over his head and tightened it so the laptop tucked tightly to his body. "But come on. I've got us a driver who knows the city like the back of his hand."

"Just as long as there aren't holes in the floor that let me see the ground as we're driving."

"He patched those weeks ago."

As promised, their driver knew the city well enough to steer them through the tight turns and around the traffic Anna swore was one-half sheep. He dropped them at a restaurant where duos of older men drinking thin glasses of dark coffee and speaking rapidly to one another in a mixture of Arabic and their local dialects. John put a hand on Anna's, keeping her close to him, and leaned down to whisper in her ear.

"They're suspicious of foreigners because they think we're all either here to recruit them or to blow them up."

"I can understand the sentiments." Anna nodded at a duo of old men with impressive beards that raised their eyes to stare at them. "But we're not CIA."

"They're not the only people who recruit around here." John guided her to a table in the corner inside and ordered something quickly in Arabic from the boy running over to them. "You spend enough time on the streets and you learn to spot the people who don't quite fit."

"The ever-changing and never-ending supply of 'Mr. Lynch'?" Anna sat back in her chair, shaking her head before having to grab her scarf to keep it up over her hair. "I've never been a fan of spooks."

"Deal with a lot of them?"

"Not in hospital but enough to know they'll never tell you anything and they've always got something else in mind."

"Counterproductive?"

"Not always. They're just…" Anna flailed her hands, "They've got a different objective than we do. They're supposed to stop wars before they start, get intelligence to end wars earlier, and work to make the friends to help with a peaceful transition after it's all over but one bungle on their tightrope and suddenly it's FUBAR for us."

"Tired of feeling like the world's cleanup crew?"

"Aren't we all?" Anna started as another man sat down at their table, putting a hand on John's back and speaking rapidly in French.

"Of course." John responded in the English and the man blinked before scowling at Anna.

"Another one who speaks no Arabic, Pashto, or even French."

"I can manage a little Russian and German but I was never one for Romance languages." Anna extended her hand but the man shook his head.

"Not wise."

"Amooz, this is my fiancé."

Amooz blinked at her, his expression softening a bit before saying something else to John in French before addressing Anna in English. "My apologies. I just asked him how a face as ugly as his managed to find someone like you."

"I'm sure he worked very hard." Anna grinned at them and crossed her hands on the table as the boy returned with their order. "How long've you known John?"

"Since his first tour here. He did me a service and I've been trying my best to see where this relationship can take the both of us."

"Your English is impeccable."

"I studied in America for a time." He turned back to John, "Why'd you call to meet me? I told you the only details I had last week."

"Because I'm here about something a bit more… sensitive."

Amooz's eyebrows went up, "Like what?"

John turned to Anna and she spoke. "I've examined a few women at hospital over the last few months with signs of sexual assault and rape."

Amooz paled and shook his head, "Tell me no names. I won't put those women in danger by knowing any more of this."

"That's why we need your help." John put a hand on Amooz's arm as he went to leave the table. "We want to find the person responsible."

Amooz's eyes narrowed. "You want to find out who's taking the honor of these women? Why?"

"Because," Anna took a deep breath, "I've got a feeling the man's suffering from syphilis and that he's one of the soldiers on our base."

"Then test your men. Don't bring these women into it again. You'll shame them forever and ruin their families. Do you know what you'd do to their fathers?"

"I've got an idea but I can't request the files because there's no reason."

"A man in your uniforms going around raping our women is a reason."

Anna winced, "We're trying to find him on our own."

"Without the help of those about you?" Amooz barked out a humorless laugh. "Because you're afraid of the reputation of the uniforms we already despise?"

"No, because if we do let anyone know then not only will we raise a panic on the base but it'll mean those women'll have to testify." Anna took a breath, "To keep their dignity and their honor, we can't let anyone find out we even know this is going on."

"So you'll keep secret a predator in your midst?"

"One doesn't kill a scorpion by frightening it." John faced Amooz. "When have you known me to lie?"

"Never."

"Then trust that Anna's going to do everything she can to find the perpetrator." John let his body sag slightly. "It's not ideal and it's not perfect but it's what we've got to offer Amooz."

Amooz sucked the insides of his cheek, breathing slowly as he eyed the two of them. It took a moment before he spoke again. "What do you want from me?"

"A man like this makes noise. If not just… in the act itself, but in general. It's either a spur of the moment decision or it's premeditated. Either way, he's got to track these women and find a way to corner them."

Amooz nodded, "There are some places he'd have to be."

"Then," John leaned in again. "Maybe you and a few others could find a way to keep your eyes open at those areas. Get a little recon going?"

"I'm not your agent or your soldier."

"No," Anna put a hand out, diffusing the lightning crackling in Amooz's eyes. "But you are from here. You know who stands out and who makes big waves. You know what this means, for both sides, if we fail."

"And I'm the only option you have?"

John shrugged, "Not the only option but you're the best one."

"You didn't want anyone else to help you?"

"They couldn't have helped like you do." John extended a hand, "What do you say?"

Amooz studied his hand a moment before taking it. "As long as you tell that CIA man I pointed out last time to back off. I don't want his pitch and I won't work for his government."

John nodded, taking his hand back. "Consider it done. I'll get him off your back."

"Good." Amooz reached for John's drink and knocked the contents back in a second before pushing himself away from the table. He bowed at the neck to Anna. "I'm happy to be of help."

"I'm happy you're helping." Amooz left them alone in the little café and Anna sagged in her chair. "Is it always like this?"

"Sometimes he says no." John stood, helping Anna do the same. "I should get you back before I go and knock a CIA head."

"You know the CIA guy he's talking about?"

John nodded, "As a reporter I know most of the people who skulk around the alleys with me. You never know who you'll meet in the trenches and you never want to burn bridges."

"How'll you not burn that bridge if Amooz-"

"I've got some contacts who'll jump to work for the CIA because then they'll be in a real-life spy movie." John laughed, "It's good work sometimes."

"I'm sure it is." Anna walked them back to the street and they took the hair-raising cab back to base.

As they arrived Anna caught sight of General Crawley, and his aide, getting into a car and aiming for the city. She and John exchanged looks before he tugged her hand into the hospital tent structure. Weaving through the crush together, John got them back to her office and locked the doors before slapping pieces of paper to the little windows to block the view of the interior.

Anna went to sit on her desk but John stopped her, hands gripping her hips, and pulled her onto his lap as he took the chair Tom occupied earlier. "When do you go on shift?"

She turned over her shoulder to the clock on the wall. "I've got a surgery in the morning but otherwise I'm only needed if we've got an emergency."

"Even with Tom off shift?"

"We've been quiet lately and I'm hoping for that to continue." Anna ran a hand through his hair to set it on end. "You're not going to spoil that are you?"

"I always hope you're loud." John moved his mouth to her neck.

"Do you?" Anna flexed her fingers against his scalp as John kissed and licked along her neck. "I thought we needed to be covert."

"We do." John's whisper vibrated against her neck. "But that doesn't mean I want you to be quiet."

"Needs must."

"They do." John ran a ring of kisses at her collar before catching the sting where her engagement ring dangled and pulled it free of her shirt. He paused, running his finger along it to bring the string up high enough so the ring hung between them. "I can't wait to add another ring here."

"Neither can I." Anna took his lips with hers, easing slowly into a kiss with no rush to it. "It'll be just as lovely near my heart."

"I was rather hoping," John's fingers teased over the material of her shirt to tug it slowly from the confines of her belted khakis. "You were going to tell me about it drops between your breasts and sits there."

"I hardly notice it." Anna played with a bit of hair that curled by his ear. "It already feels so natural I guess I just thought it already belonged there."

Both of them softened slightly and any of the residual anxiety about their actions or the possible constraints on their time melted away. John removing her shirt to bury his lips between her breasts and care for the skin exposed to him left Anna no choice but to curve herself about him and melt into his embrace. With each touch of his tongue to her skin or kiss or suck, Anna rolled against him to find a better way to reach his care. Soon her fingers bent back with the twist of her arms to release the catch on her bra so nothing could prevent John from suckling freely at her exposed breasts between the gentle massage his previously wandering hands had not attempted.

Anna arched into his hold, digging her fingers into the back of his head to better guide his motions so he reached those places that begged for his attentions. But her own fingers could not continue carding in his hair for satisfaction. Instead they dug under the hem of his shirt and push it up to run through the sprinkling of hair on his chest. Hair she petted and ran through until John raised his head and arms for her to drop his shirt to the side.

The moment of distraction proved enough for Anna to bend at the waist and trace John. Her lips worked and moved over him, guiding along the edges of muscle and bone so similar and yet so different from her own body. Each kiss sent a little shiver through John until Anna slid herself back off his legs to kneel in front of him. John leaned down, his mouth open as if to argue, but Anna stretched up to put a finger on his lips and shook her head.

"I know you want to make this about me but it can be about both of us." Anna kissed around her finger, sliding her hand to hold his face still so she could better kiss him. As she drew away, John's breath barely escaping his lips, "Please let me?"

He only nodded and used the arms on the chair to lift his hips so Anna could yank the trousers she just unbelted down his legs. They dropped to his ankles and a slightly quieter thump of his briefs joining them left John exposed to the air… and to Anna. She slotted herself between his legs, pushing on his knees with her arms to stretched out as far as the confines of his dropped drawers would allow. Drawers that formed the start of the line she used to guide her hands up his legs.

They stared at one another as Anna kissed his exposed thighs. Small divots and scars from old bruises, everyday accidents, and a few more notable stories bumped and ran under her lips to set a trail to his hips. Hips Anna traced with her tongue and lips while passing over the notable set piece between John's legs. A piece that quivered and trembled when Anna blew air over the tip before placing a soft kiss there on her way to his other hip.

John grunted in his throat, Anna's eyes flicking up to catch sight of the strained muscles in his neck and the whitening of his knuckles on the arm of the chair. Ignoring the thrill that ran down her spine, Anna kept to the symmetry of her motions and followed her earlier pattern to kiss over the more notable scars on John's right leg. Her hands smoothed over the skin, the wiry hairs there tickling her palms, and helped Anna leverage herself to place another soft kiss on John's arousal.

He twisted, sliding over the rough fabric of the chair to half-thrust toward her. Anna took the initiative and opened her mouth to take as much of him as she could while her hands continued a massage of his thighs and hips. Each touch drove him to move and Anna worked to anticipate his motions so she could better use her tongue and lips around his girth.

The wet suck tensed John's muscles under her hands and Anna moved them to the delicate skin of his arousal and the hanging weight beneath it. The combination of sensations drove noises to escape John's tight lips until he shuddered and managed half-sobs. Sobs that came out in a cry when Anna finished him off.

Without a moment to exult in his reaction, John lifted Anna back to his lap so he could kiss her thoroughly. His tongue sought out any remaining taste of himself there to leave only her behind. And so thorough were his efforts, Anna broke the kiss breathless and clutching to John's shoulders when he lifted her to walk the two steps from the chair to the desk. Even with his trousers and drawers dropped around his ankles John managed to get Anna's ass on the desk.

Her own belt and khakis dropped to her boots and John spread her legs to let his fingers take action. They delved and dipped into her, Anna's fingers digging into his shoulders while her body leaned back to better expose herself to his attentions. Attentions he laser-focused with his fingers while his mouth took over his earlier ministrations to her breasts. Breasts that heaved with the breaths Anna hauled into her lungs with each suck of his lips or graze of his teeth over her nipples.

When he dropped his lips from her Anna wondered if she was free. But all John did was reflect her earlier actions by driving his tongue deep into her. He sucked, licked, teased, and laved at her swelling flesh as if he intended to drink her dry while his fingers worked over her clit to send her nerves fizzing and sputtering like the electricity firing through her body.

Anna rocked into his mouth, the edges of her metal desk digging indentations in the palms of her hands, and tried to open her legs wider. With her boots still tied to her ankles her trousers could only stretch so far. John risked a moment away from her to tug the laces free enough to knock the boots from her feet and drop her trousers and knickers to pile on the floor. Then he dove back in.

Between his tongue and his fingers, John had Anna biting in her hand to stop herself screaming out in the echoes of her tin-sided office. She stuttered as she breathed, her lungs flexing like a bellows to try and help her heart return to a normal pace and thereby reduce the thunder tramp in her ears. But any hope she had for that was lost the moment she noticed John freed himself of his clothes as completely as he freed her of hers.

And he was ready again.

Catching his hand, Anna spread her legs and drew John forward so she could wrap those same legs around his waist. They adjusted, taking a moment for the logistics of an otherwise completely irrational moment, and John drove forward. Anna's head went back and her fingers gripped around bones to try hold herself steady.

"It's only been two days." John murmured into her neck, his forehead slipping over her skin as their sweat reduced the coefficient of friction.

"Feels like longer."

"Like an eternity." John turned his head enough to kiss the side of her neck as his hands took position on her ass to hold her steady when he drew back and then thrust forward again. "What is six months going to feel like?"

"Too long." Anna wrapped her arm around his shoulders and help him close to her as she tightened her legs. "It'll be too long."

They continued moving together, Anna angling her hips while holding herself more on John than on the desk beneath her. John's hands proved effective at steering them together and incrementally increased their pace with a spread of his legs and tightening of his fingers. Their sounds mixed and eddied between the half-contained moans they tried to bury behind their lips and deep in their throats and the noise of their bodies coming together. The occasional bump of Anna's desk did them no favors either.

But they came together, gasping and grasping at one another as they settled. Anna managed a final clench of her vaginal walls to leave John groaning into her shoulder. She tried to giggle but the final stutters of his body thrusting into hers sparked the nerves that had already fired for the second time.

"Turnabout is fair play." John breathed against her, pulling back to leave a kiss on her lips. "And I should let you get to work."

"Do you have to?"

"That's a question you can answer better than I can." John placed a careful hand on her hair. "Sometimes I amaze myself."

"Because you left my hair in one piece?"

"Because the scarf's still there." John pulled it away, sending shivers over Anna's skin as it brushed her sensitive nipples. "And yes, the fact you're not obviously ravished is a point of personal pride."

"Not obviously?" Anna looked down at her chest, dotted with red marks and the vague indentations of teeth. "That's 'not obvious' to you?"

"The only one who'll see those is me." John grinned and then made an 'ooph' sound when Anna pushed him back into the chair he occupied earlier. "You're not about to reprimand me are you?"

"Not like that." Anna slipped the scarf from his hands and wrapped it over his eyes before sitting back on his lap. "This is more like a preview."

"Of?"

"I didn't tell you?" Anna teased, nipping at his ear while one of her hands ran over his slick half-hard erection to try and get him to come back to life. It was a tight turn around- excessively so since he already went two rounds- but she wanted to push the limits since they had no idea when this might happen again. "I ordered something for you."

"Did you?" John husked, his voice falling him as his body responded and Anna grinned against the skin of his neck. "What?"

"In those packages waiting for me at my neighbor's," Anna ran her teeth down a stretched tendon in his neck to run her tongue in the little indentation at the base of his throat. "There's a leather bustier and a whip."

"What?" John jerked in her grip but Anna continued, hardening him with each pump of blood along the large vein that ran there.

"There's also some matching neckties and two belts." Anna slipped forward, leaning her shoulders against him to hold herself still while she moved his hands between her legs to work her up to the level she already had him. "This is just a preview of what I'll do with those."

"Blind me?"

"I'm going to tie you to the bed, blindfold you, and then torture you with me in a leather get up." Anna giggled against his neck when John's fingers slipped over her. "How's that sound?"

"Only good if I get to touch."

"There'll be plenty of touching, don't you worry." Anna clamped her knees around his hips on the chair only big enough for him, and rose up enough to position him perfectly under her. "If you still want to try it, that is."

"Yes please."

"Good." Anna removed his hands and then hers, sinking down on him and dropping her legs to either side so her toes touched the ground.

They did not provide much leverage, restricted as her legs were with only the sliver of space between his legs and the arms of the chair she threaded herself through, but John fixed that. With one hand on the arm of the chair and the other at her hip he thrust steadily into her. Anna adjusted enough to let each stroke fill her while also reaching the nerves craving a third round. Nerves John immediately sought out like a recognizable landmark with his fingers.

The chair groaned and screeched over the concrete floor but neither of them had time to care. Familiar trails of sweat ran down Anna's back and between her legs as hers shifted and slipped on John. And when his mouth found her breasts, Anna could only hold onto the arm of the chair and his head for support.

They came easily this time. Not quite as earth-shattering as before but enough to leave them sagging against one another. Anna's fingers trembled and struggled with the knot on the scarf but eventually she freed him to look at her.

Their lips met softly, running and meshing together as if they were sharing a private moment in a corner instead of settling after a rather flagrant breach of orders. Anna sighed, pulling back and easing herself off John before he could rise, and handed over a container of wet cloths. Cloths that only succeeded in adding a faint fragrance of lemon and orange to a room heavy with the scent of sex.

"I'd crank the aircon if that wouldn't give it all away."

"Pretty sure we already gave ourselves away." John tucked the front of his shirt into his trousers and gathered the rest of his things. "But it was worth the risk."

"You always are." Anna checked her hair again in a small mirror and made a show of tucking her ring back under her shirt. "Keeping it close."

"Where it should be."

"Where it should be." Anna took the sheets of paper John handed over to her and nodded toward the aircon. "Better risk it."

He cranked it high and Anna immediately shivered as the vents right above her head doused her in cold air. "Sorry."

"It's for the best." Anna opened the doors to her office and stepped to the side. "Better let you get back to your job."

"And you to yours." John paused, "But you're still sure?"

"About the wedding?" Anna nodded, "I wouldn't miss it for the world."

"Good." John stole a final kiss, "To take with me."

"There'll be more where that came from, I promise." Anna stepped out of his reach. "If I don't then I'll just have you again."

"What, three times wasn't enough?"

"Never." Anna snorted, "But you're quite the Celtic warrior aren't you?"

"I try to live up to the memory of my kilt-wearing ancestors."

"Maybe you should find a kilt for the wedding."

"I'll see what I can do." John reached out a hand, brushing over her cheek. "I'll see you later."

"Is that a promise."

"It's a guarantee."


	11. Tell Me You Love Me

Berlin, 1945

John rubbed his eyes and before closing one to squint the other through the keyhole. The corridor almost echoed in its emptiness and the vague reflections at either end showed no change. He sat back in his chair, shaking his head.

"Keeping looking through that thing and you'll go blind." John turned over his shoulder to where Talbot and Branson laid out their cards again, the deck already folding and bending with overuse.

"The only think you know about going blind is what your mother taught you so you wouldn't touch yourself." Branson flicked a card at Talbot, who only batted it away. "Let him look if he thinks it'll help."

"Help him pull all of his hair out." Talbot shook his head. "Get yourself something to eat Bates of you'll be no good doing guard duty."

"I'll be no good doing anything." John peeked through the eyehole again and sighed. "It's been two days. How could there be no sign of him? Does he ever come home?"

"I guess we have to trust in the allegiance of your German lady-friend." Branson laid down another card, darting his eyes to John to meet a vicious scowl. "I'm not questioning her but this is a dangerous time and who knows? She's got a son and women, once they become mothers, would murder the world for their children. It's just the way they're bred."

"Good thing too or you mother would've left you out to die." Talbot laid down a card and Branson threw his to the table. "Focus and you won't be so easy to read."

"What do either of you know about it?"

"Look," Talbot half-turned in his chair to face John. "You've got a host of emotions running through you. Part of you wonders if she's telling you the truth about it. You wonder what's happened to her since you've been gone. You wonder what the war did to her. You wonder about everything and it's clogging your brain. Go get some air and clear your head."

"And trust you two to do this for me?"

"I don't know if you were paying any attention at all when you were with us during the war but we're totally useless." Branson reshuffled the deck. "We saved your ass any number of times all over Italy and France. We dug a fecking foxhole to share with you and yet you think we're just flies on a cow's ass."

"I didn't mean-"

"You're micromanaging because you're afraid." Talbot shrugged, kicking at Branson under the table. "And it's understandable but maybe that's why you need to be anywhere else but here right now."

"You expect me to just leave her to whatever fate comes with her returning Nazi husband?"

"We expect you to have a clear head about this and obviously-" Branson stopped, going to the window at the back of the flat to look down to the street below. "It's a bit late for someone to be walking the street."

Talbot checked his watch, "Well past curfew."

"Light." Branson snapped his fingers and John hit the switches to throw their flat into darkness before joining Branson at the window. "Recognize him?"

"From this distance and height? He's just another man with a hat and overcoat walking in a drizzle."

"Oh, looks like he's coming into the building." Branson moved away from the window and toward the door.

"How'd you even hear him anyway?" John pivoted to watch as Branson put his eye to the hole and squinted through it.

"Because I was listening."

Branson held up a hand and the flat fell into silence. A moment later he raised one finger and then waved them both to the door. He stepped back and allowed Talbot the first look. When Talbot stepped back with a nod, John pressed his face to the door to take a peek through the opening.

The same man from the street walked the length of the corridor twice, stopping for a moment at each door as if to listen for noises from within. After a moment he stopped at their door and John held his breath. With his hat tilted down, John could not see the man's face and pulled away from the looking hole just in case there was a way this man could see back through it.

But whatever he heard, or did not hear, the man drew away from the door and knocked softly at the door across from their door. John pressed his face to the eyehole and watched as the door to Anna's flat opened and she quickly ushered the man inside. In the half-second that the door remained open, she nodded twice at John's door and then shut her own. Pulling away from the door John nodded at Branson and Talbot.

They waited five minutes, Branson and Talbot checking their pistols, and left the flat. Almost as one, they moved the five steps from the empty flat they commandeered for their viewing party to Anna's door. John put his hand on the knob while Branson and Talbot kept their hands ready at their pistols. He turned the knob and the three of them stormed into the room.

John darted past the man still pulling his arms free of his coat sleeves and wrapped Anna in his grip. He shuffled them both to a corner as Branson and Talbot tackled the other man to the ground. The struggle reached John's ears over the thunder of blood boiling in his body and he pulled away from Anna.

She clutched at his coat a moment, holding him close, and then released him with a nod. John let his fingers linger over hers, drawing back to face the man Talbot held with an arm wrapped around his neck as Branson twisted the man's arms behind his back. And as they moved the man to his knees his head came up and John met the eyes of Officer Grün.

"This him?" Talbot asked, twisting Grün's head so he could not drop his gaze and John could get a good look at him. "Did we catch ourselves a Nazi?"

John crouched in front of him, noting the twinkle of fear at the edge of the man's eyes that fought with the firm set of his jaw. "Remember me?"

"You're the English man who made a slut of my wife."

"She wasn't your wife then. She never really was yours." John worked his jaw, fingers clenching and unclenching until he pulled back. "Get him to the car and make sure he doesn't make any noise. Ross wouldn't want that."

"I'm sure I can find a sock to stuff in his big mouth." Branson reached over to the table and grabbed a napkin, stuffing it in Grün's mouth before he worked a set of metal handcuffs around the man's wrists to keep them tight behind his back.

Talbot released his neck and nodded to Anna, who came to John's side. "Sorry for the disturbance, ma'am, and we'll be out of your hair now."

"John?" Her fingers held around John's arm as Talbot and Branson wrestled Grün out of the door. "What now?"

"Now we get whatever you want to carry out of this country gathered up and then we get you and Johann to a place the Americans have got for you."

"The Americans?"

"Yes."

Anna narrowed her eyes, "Why are they…?"

"It's temporary. For the moment, anyway." John's eyes darted to the door, even though the only evidence of Grün or the other two was confined to grunts and moans from the staircase. "If he says nothing and isn't any help then…"

"Then we'll be stuck here?"

"No."

"John, we both know that if there's nothing he can offer then-"

"Hey," John held her hands as she went to turn away, shaking his head. "I won't let that happen. This is just one plan. If it doesn't work then I'll find something else. I won't stop until I've got you both safe and out of here. I promise."

Anna only nodded and then pointed to a few things. "We'll want those and that. Perhaps… No, I can leave that."

Two hours later John loaded Anna's things into the back of a borrowed jeep as she held a half-asleep Johann close to her in the cab. He kept mumbling half-formed sentences in German that Anna answered or hushed as John finished with the few things Anna had finally decided would come. Johann's small bag fit on top of the few others she chose while leaving everything else in her flat with the door open.

"Is that wise?" John asked, carrying her cases while Anna hefted Johann. "They could take-"

"I hope they take it and may it do them some good." Anna shook her head, "I've spent too much of my life watching people around me suffer without the capacity to help them. If this is what I can do then it's what I'll do."

John nodded and guided them down the dark staircase to the jeep. And once he sorted the things in the back he climbed into the cab with them. The engine turned over and the sound broke the quiet the night, startling Johann. He struggled against his mother a moment until she soothed him back to his dozing sleep.

"Sorry." John winced, driving through the streets and trying to avoid potholes, rubble, and those who resorted to sleeping there as their homes stood as nothing more than crumbling monuments to what they used to be. "I didn't know it'd-"

"It's fine." Anna put her hand over his on the wheel, the other idly stroking Johann's hair. "He's fine. It just startled him."

"How much'll it startle him when you tell him the truth?"

Anna kissed the top of Johann's head, straightening out his dark hair before looking out the windshield. "Once we're away. I don't want to add too much at once. It'll overwhelm him that we're leaving the only home he knows."

"Do you think he'll like England?"

"I hope so." Anna let a small smile take over her mouth. "I always wanted to see England. I remember when you'd describe it to me and it sounded so idyllic."

"Not sure it's that idyllic now with London looking a wreck and a lot of pockmarked fields."

"Does it look like this?" Anna waved a hand at the sight out the windows of the jeep and John cringed, shaking his head. "Then it's perfect and pastoral."

"But what if we moved somewhere else?" John shrugged a shoulder, pulling into the avenue toward a blockade guarded by soldiers discernable in the lowlight through the glow of their cigarettes. "Somewhere you won't be judged for your accent?"

"Anywhere I go I'll be judged for my accent. It was the case after the first time and now it will be again." Anna set her shoulders stiffly as they pulled up to the soldiers. "I'm not afraid of what I am."

"What about Johann?"

"He'll lose his accent the more he speaks English and spends time with you." Anna silenced as the soldiers drew up to the cab of the jeep.

"Evening folks." One of the soldiers leaned on the top, his hair immaculate despite the drizzle and the lateness of the hour. "Taking an evening drive?"

"I'm Captain John Bates, British Army." John pulled out his credentials and handed them to the man. "We're here to see Major Ross. He's expecting us."

"Major Ross?" The man snorted, handing John's credentials back. "Not sure what you'd want to do with that negro but I guess it's all about preference."

"I'm sure it is."

"Well, if you want to meet with him that's your business." The soldier stepped back. "Let them through."

John turned away from the man and drove through the blockade. He steered them further into the camp and parked where another soldier waved him. Anna went to move out of the cab but John put a hand on her arm. "Not yet. I want to make sure they've got your place all setup."

"John," Anna shook her head. "I'm not staying in a cab with my sleeping son. We're coming with you now. That's the safest."

John nodded and got out of his side. Before Anna could extricate herself on hers, John was there to open the door and took Johann's weight in his arms. Anna tried to say something, perhaps even take him back, but John shook his head.

"You're exhausted and you need rest."

"So do you."

"I'm good for the moment." John held Johann closer as he snuggled into him. "Is it alright?"

Anna nodded and slithered her hand into the crook of his elbow to hold there as John led them into one of the buildings. One of the soldiers who raised an eyebrow at them guided the unorthodox trio down the hall to a doorway still shining with light. He knocked on the window for them and saluted the man who answered before walking back to his post.

"Brought the whole brood did you Bates?" Ross called from the interior and the man at the door pulled it back. "This is Ethan Slade, my translator and aide."

"Nice to meet you both." Slade nodded at them, his smile taking over his face.

John nodded back, adjusting Johann in his arms as the boy adjusted to bury his face away from the light of the office. Ross looked up from where he wrote something out at his desk and then stood up in a hurry. "My apologies for forgetting everything about manners."

"It's late and you're busy so I-"

"No, no," Ross held up a hand to silence John and rounded the desk to shake Anna's hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you Mrs. Grün."

"I'd rather go by 'Mrs. Bates' if it's all the same to you."

"It will be once we get your husband talking to us." Ross nodded at her and then peeked into John's arms to get a better look at Johann. "You weren't kidding about him being yours were you?"

"He's a spitting image of me at six."

"More pity you." Ross winked at Anna and then put his hands on his hips. "Now Lieutenant Slade was kind enough to get you some rooms at the barracks but it's nothing special. It's private but cramped, if that's not a problem."

"I'm sure there are those who've endured worse." Anna answered but Ross held up a hand. "Is something wrong?"

"Do you know how to work a radio, Mrs. Grü- I mean, Mrs. Bates?"

Anna blinked at him and then stammered her answer. "I worked as a radio operator during the war. It was a way for me to contribute."

"So you learned how it worked and all the details?"

"Of course."

John frowned, "Where's this going Ross?"

Ross smiled and wagged a finger at Anna. "I thought it'd be difficult to denazify you but I think I might've underestimated you and I apologize for that."

"What are you talking about?"

Ross turned to John. "I'm sure you're not entirely ignorant of the fact we had radio operators working in our networks that got Jews and others out of Germany. Some of our agents and SOE operatives yes?"

"I heard something about them but not-" John turned to Anna, who ducked her head. "You were one of the operators?"

"I knew some people involved in the movement and I wanted to do what I could to help." Anna shrugged, "It was easier for me. As the wife of a Gestapo officer I could access things others couldn't. I got into places others couldn't and I…"

"What?"

"I occasionally got information from Alexander when he…" Anna did not finish the comment, turning the corner as John moved Johann in his grip again when the tingle in his arms persisted. "I did what I could."

"Did what you could?" Ross laughed, "I recognized your voice, although the English threw me a moment. You sound different speaking English than you did speaking German."

"I'm sure you'll like my German better."

"Your English is fine." Ross waved her off, "You helped get us so many forged documents and aided the underground in so many ways. How many Jews did you save again?"

"I only counted the ones I lost."

"But there weren't many and that-"

"Major," Anna cut him off and even John jumped slightly at the tone in his voice. "I'd like to find a place I can give my son a bed for the night and get some sleep myself so we're more prepared for whatever may come tomorrow. If that's alright with you."

"Absolutely." Ross slapped a hand to his forehead. "Excuse me. I overexcited myself and got distracted."

"Happens to the best of us I'm sure." John turned as Lieutenant Slade tapped them both on their shoulders. "Where is Grün?"

"Branson and Talbot brought him a few hours ago and he's sweating himself in a cell." Ross shrugged, "Branson and Talbot returned to their base with a message that you were staying on here for the night to help us. I'm sure you don't mind."

"I appreciate the effort."

"Now, get some rest. Tomorrow we hit the ground running and see if we can find those scientists." Ross ushered them out of the office and into the waiting arms of Slade. "Sleep well all."

They followed Slade through the building and out onto a field filled with tents and temporary buildings. He ignored these and they entered a low building, missing some of its top floors, and pulled a key from a ring. When the door unlocked he stepped inside and hit a light switch. The buzz of lights running on the same generators they installed for the camp and set up with wires dangling from the ceiling lit the stark situation that greeted them.

John moved around the space, occupied by a small bed, a table, and a washroom that was more of two closets tacked together. Another closet provided a bed only big enough to fit the curled body of Johann as John laid him on the cot there. The stiff and scratchy military blankets pulled over the one already wrapped over Johann so the boy did not shiver in the husk of a building, and John stepped back to leave the door cracked slightly.

"It's the best we could do on short notice but, with luck, in a few days you'll be going to England and making your new accommodations there." Slade's ever-cheery voice rang oddly in the distorted echo of the room. "Well, did you bring anything else?"

"There are bags in the back of the jeep." John made as if to go with him but Slade shook his head.

"I've got a few bags Captain Bates. I'll bring them right back here and you can make this a bit more homey."

He bounced away and Anna shut the door. "I'm not sure that's possible."

"It's only temporary Anna."

"Yes," She sat on the edge of her cot, the squeak almost sending her back to her feet. "Because once they know Alexander will never talk then they'll be horribly disappointed. I'll have to return to a flat empty of everything and start all over. But this time they won't be afraid of what could happen. I'll be a woman with a son in a world barely controlled by those with good intentions while roving bands of marauding militants take what they want and-"

"Anna." John knelt in front of her, hands on her arms. "Don't."

"Don't speak the truth?"

"Don't despair." John pointed to the little room where Johann slept. "We've got to be strong for him."

"John," Anna took his hands. "You've a home to go back to. Once you finish here they'll send you home. This is my home and there's nothing left of it but rubble."

"There's nothing left of my home but rubble too." John shrugged, "My house was destroyed in the Blitz. Everything there either burned in the incinerating inferno or crushed to pieces when the building collapsed. I've got nothing."

"Then why-"

"Because my home isn't a pile of bricks or stone." John caressed over Anna's hands. "It's with you. It's with Johann. It's wherever we decide to make our home and build our lives again. If it's in England then we find a place with sunshine and grass and hope. If it's here then we do the same thing.

"Either way." John looked up at Anna, the tears welling in her eyes matching his. "I'm not leaving you again."

She slipped her hands from his grip and held his face with gentle fingers. They leaned toward one another, their lips almost touching, but pulled apart as someone knocked on the door. John sighed and pushed himself up from the floor, waving Anna back to her cot, and answered to see Slade and another soldier holding the bags and another cot.

"Thought you'd be more comfortable on a cot instead of the floor if you're staying in here." He brought the cot over to where Anna sat and set it up, piling blankets on top of it while the other soldier stacked the cases in the corner. "If you need anything then just give a holler."

"Don't you sleep?"

"As long as the Major's up then so am I." Slade shrugged. "I don't really need sleep with these new pills I got off an Aussie. He said he used them in Singapore when it got taken by the Japanese. He stayed awake for three days."

"You've got amphetamines?"

"Is that what they are?" Slade jerked a shoulder, "I guess they've got to have a scientific name to explain all the cool things they do."

He left the room, bobbing into the darkness with the other soldier, and John shut the door. The same stiff, coarse blankets piled on the end of his cot and John unfurled them to lay over Anna's cot. But she stopped him, pushing the cots together, and took over making up the makeshift bed.

"I'm not sure it'll work like that."

"Then we'll take the floor." Anna tapped it. "Can't be much worse than the prospect of sleeping on these cots."

"I guess not." John collapsed the cots, pulling the material from them to leave the supports in the corner as they laid a few blankets over the material and then attempted to lay on the repurposed padding.

"It'll do." Anna sighed, kicking her shoes off from her position on her back, and laying in her clothes. "If this is the best the Americans can do."

"I'm sure their experience with comfort isn't entirely lost." John turned his head to meet her eyes. "It's just the circumstance. Once they settle in for the long haul they'll make this place a hotel."

"I'm sure they will." Anna raised a hand, drawing her finger down John's face. "I prayed you'd be kept safe."

"I wasn't in any danger tonight."

"Not tonight." Anna shook her head, shuffling over the blankets to get closer to John as he kicked off his own shoes and removed his jacket to drape over a wooden stool. "I meant when you had to leave."

"I didn't want to go."

"I know." Anna let her finger slip down the buttons of John's shirt, her nail clicking slightly on the plastic of each one. "And part of me wished I'd kept you close. But I knew the risk and I could bear the not-knowing, the praying to God that He'd keep you safe because then there was a chance you were still alive. I couldn't bear the thought that, if you had stayed, you would've been dragged away to die horribly in one of those camps somewhere."

"Those camps you helped save people from?" John brushed a strand of hair away from her face. "You didn't tell me you were a resistor."

"There were many of us. Little people who only had so much they could do." Anna shrugged, "I wanted to find a purpose. I needed to find something so that Johann could…"

"So Johann could be proud of you." Anna nodded and John closed his eyes a moment before speaking again. "Did you know?"

"When you left?" John took his turn at nodding. "I suspected but I wasn't sure. I didn't want to say anything and then we got the notice you had to leave the country and…"

"You didn't want me to risk my life to stay?"

"I couldn't bear the thought that Johann would grow up with a father he'd lose in an instant when the SS came to our home and dragged him away." Anna shuddered, "I know it wasn't fair to you but I knew the best way for Johann to grow up was with a father alive. Somewhere out there trying to get back to us."

"Always." John cupped her jaw, fingers caressing slowly in place. "you never left my thoughts for a moment."

"You were always in mine." Anna dropped her gaze. "I hope you can forgive me."

"Forgive you?" John almost laughed if not for the crinkle of pain on Anna's face. "There's nothing to forgive. You're without fault in anything."

"I married Grün. I let him… I had to allow… We…"

"Anna." John took her hands, kissing over her fingers and taking extra care where her ring sat. "You did what you did to survive. And you protected our son. What could I hold against you for that?"

"I committed adultery."

"I don't see it that way and I don't believe God would either."

"Would God see me as a bigamist?"

"Our union was before God, Anna. Your… arrangements with Grün was before the State. They hold no power for the affairs of the Lord." John kissed over her fingers again, hoping to ease the trembling there. "He's the Judge and He'll be the one to say what is what but as far as I'm concerned you're still my wife. You're still my love and that's our son. Grün is nothing but a nightmare now. A ghoul who lives in the dark or under the bed. And, soon, he'll be nothing but a memory to anyone. He'll be nothing, Anna."

"But…" Anna struggled a moment, "My shame's out in the open. There's nowhere for it to hide anymore."

"What shame?" John wracked his brain, trying to understand the context of the words out of Anna's mouth. "I don't see any shame in this."

"But I'm… I'm spoiled for you."

"Spoiled?"

"And I can never be unspoiled."

"You could never be spoiled to me." John slipped over the coarse, rasping fabric of the blankets under them to hold Anna close. "You're my wife and you're made holier, and higher, to me because the suffering you've been put through And I…"

"What?"

John exhaled, "I couldn't be more proud of you than I am at this moment."

"Truly?"

"Truly." John took a deep breath. "I'd like to kiss you now, Mrs. Bates, if I can."

"I'd like that."

Their lips met and it was as if all the agonies of the last six years melted away. Time was nothing, the hard floor under them was nothing, and all they had to hold on to was one another. Buttons came loose from holes and zippers moved to leaving a heap of clothing piled next to their makeshift bed. Fingers gripped and tugged until their bodies rolled into positions they recognized from an eternity ago but they fit together as if it had been only yesterday.

John's tongue worked over Anna's folds, licking and sucking as she tugged and pulled at the blankets under them to leave rumpled divots in the fabric. Her fingers left his hair standing on end from endless pulling through it and when she came her nails left crescent-shaped marks there. Marks her fingers tried to soothe when John joined them together and his lips met hers.

Dancing together, his hand on her thigh to hold it higher and wider to sink deeper, they reached for the high together. And when they came, John trying to bury his grunt in Anna's shoulder, they sagged back onto the hard floor. The final stutters of their bodies shifting together seemed to remind them of the sparse conditions about them but John settled at Anna's side all the same.

When they moved together for the second time, Anna's leg snagging over John's hip to pull them together, it was just as natural. They moved together as quietly as they could, so as to not wake up the child in the closet near them, and finished clutching at one another. John reached down and tugged the remaining blankets over them and frowned as the material rubbed and scratched at his skin.

Anna snorted slight and snuggled close to him, tucking her head at his shoulder as if returning to a spot she knew well. John held her close, forgetting about the conditions about them with the feel of Anna to keep him company instead. Slowly their breathing synchronized and they fell asleep on the floor of the sparse, makeshift cottage in the ruins of the city.


	12. Where the Lost Things Go

Berlin, 1945

John interlaced his fingers behind his neck and tugged on it as he dropped his head between his knees. Branson and Talbot paced around the room with him as they watched through the glass into the room where Ross, with Slade standing vibrating sentry in the corner, questioned Grün in rapid German. A kick at John's chair had him raising his head to see Branson.

"Good evening?"

"I slept on a concrete floor. You?"

"Cot." Branson shrugged, stifling a chuckle. "I guess they don't make cots for two in military barracks."

"I don't know about that but I guess I got the proper payment for the suffering. You should try it sometime if you think you can get anyone who'll sleep with you." John handed back, smiling with Talbot as he laughed at Branson's frown. "How were the reports?"

"I can't tell if Blake and Napier are happier another Nazi's off the streets or if they're in the hands of the Americans so they're not the King' problem." Talbot shrugged, "But I don't think our friend is having much luck."

"His German's fine."

"It's not his German that's the problem." Branson waved his hand over his face. "The Jerry in there thinks talking to a black man is beneath his dignity."

"How much dignity can a Nazi have?" John snorted. "Awful high horse for someone who did what he did to talk about dignity."

"He didn't have much dignity when he was sobbing and pleading we'd let him go." Talbot almost spit. "Fairly pissed himself thinking we were taking him to a back alley to shoot him. I didn't have the heart to tell him we don't dig masses graves for bodies they way he did."

They all sobered, thinking the comment over, and then stood as Ross entered the room. He slapped a file on the small table and pointed at the window. "Bastard won't even speak to me. Keeps addressing Slade."

"Isn't he your translator?"

"I actually translate for Yiddish, Russian, and Salvic dialects." Slade giggled, giving Talbot and Branson twisted faces. "I don't speak German at all. Completely different language family and rather an interesting one if you-"

"Alright Slade, they're clear." Ross turned to John, "You speak German yeah?"

"Of course."

"Want a crack at him?"

"Is that wise?"

Ross shrugged, "We're catching Nazis. I'm not sure anything is wise about what we're doing to try and catch the agents of Satan."

"We've got a history," John wagged his finger between himself and Green, through the glass, while addressing Ross. "It could complicate matters."

"As long as he didn't bugger you and you didn't bugger him and you're not here to get your lover out of jail, I don't care." Ross ignored Branson and Talbot's guffaws and Slade's pale face blanching to a sickening white. "I just need someone he might actually talk to so we can find out where he's stashing those scientists."

"Before the Russians get them?"

"I'd rather not leave any gifts for Uncle Stalin, yes." Ross shuddered, "Honestly, we got I bed with a monster to get rid of another one and we'll just live to regret it."

"Russians or no Russians, he'll not talk to me."

"You're the only one who speaks German here, expect his wife, and since she's told us that the scientists are probably all starving to death, I'd suggest you get your ass in there." Ross stepped back and John stood, straightening his tie. "You look lovely, now go."

John rolled his shoulders back and left the room with the four waiting men. In the hall, between the two doors, he paused. At Anna's flat it had been so fast. One moment they saw him and the next Talbot and Branson had him between them to carry him away. They barely saw one another. But now here he was, confronting the man who raised Johann as his son, took Anna to his bed, and…

Shaking his head, John opened the door. Grün raised his head and frowned a moment, as if John was something at the corner of his eye or a confusing set of directions, before snorting. "I see they had to bring in someone they think could intimidate me since your negro couldn't."

"He's not my negro and the correct term is 'Major'." John took the seat opposite Grün and sat straight in the chair. "And I'm not here to intimidate you."

"Good because I would hate to think the Americans are wasting their time." Grün sat back, scoffing, "They already used the British to find me."

"One of them was Irish. He's very specific on that point." John waited for Grün to speak again.

"You have no questions for me?"

"Nothing that Major Ross didn't already ask you. In very fine German from what I heard."

"You're not a native speaker."

"Doesn't mean I can't tell the difference between an excellent accent and a poor one." John pulled at his cuffs. "Now my mother, she could never get her tongue around German. All the guttural sounds just drove her mad."

"You spoke German with your mother?"

"No, my father spoke it with me and my mother couldn't understand us." John smiled at the memories. "My father was from Munich and moved to Dublin to study. He met my mother, married her, and they had me."

"I'm sure he was disappointed his son joined with the British."

"Not as disappointed as he was with his own King for betraying them in the Great War." John shrugged, "My father was very patriotic to his adopted country."

"Traitor."

"I'm not sure God will care what country one served when they report before Him to account for their actions."

"And you think God would not take to my actions?"

"I know God doesn't look kindly on the men who round up Jews, the disabled, the Gypsy, and the 'undesirable' and load them into train cars."

Grün rolled his eyes, "You make it sound like I'm nothing more than a farmer herding cattle."

"A farmer tends not to kill his cattle in mass graves or large gas chambers."

"I had little to do with that."

"After you proved your worth in the ghettos I'd suspect they had bigger plans for a master Jew killer like you."

"The Reich never forgot their loyal servants nor those who served with honor." Grün crossed his arms over his chest, puffing it out slightly. "I received my reward and I acted on it."

"Did you?" John chewed the inside of his cheek, "I'm sure there's nothing to do in your position but fail upward, is there?"

"Failing upwards?" Grün made a sound in his throat between a laugh and a snort of angry. "Is it failing upwards to be entrusted with the care of scientists helping the Reich achieve dominance of the skies?"

"I guess you would've had to achieve dominance for that to be something respectable." John motioned with his hand like a plane being shot down. "Not very stable, as a rule, were they?"

"Not planes, you idiot." Grün leaned over the table toward John, "I'm talking about dominance in ordinance. Military might through the atomic weapon."

"And you're just sitting on one of those, are you?"

"I'm sitting on the minds who'll build them." Grün nodded emphatically, as if to lend credence to his words by his enthusiasm. "Don't believe me?"

"Anyone can say they know where those minds are. But I'm more interested in live minds, not the ones you've so obviously got preserved in jars somewhere."

"Jars?" Grün cackles his laugh at that, setting John's teeth on edge, and banged his fist on the side of the table. "I was in charge of fifty scientists all laboring like rats day and night to launch the Führer's vision for the Fatherland."

"And I'm sure they were all excited to make their way back to what was left of their homes when the Führer shot himself instead of face the reality that his grand vision failed him?"

"The vision lives on."

"Because you're here."

"Exactly." Grün gave a smug smile. "I kept them focused, fed, and dedicated to the end."

"And then what? Let them all go?"

Grün snorted, "They're still waiting for me."

"Then it'll be a shame for them to realize that you're never coming back." John stretched his shoulder, "Seeing that you're going to rot in a little cell if the Americans don't decide to shoot you first."

"They'd never do that." Grün shook his head, "They obey the rules of war."

"I'm not sure you've met enough of them but Americans don't even read their own rule books." John leaned forward, tapping once on the table to make sure Grün looked at him. "What makes you think they'll follow the rules of war?"

"They are…"

"Pissed off, tired, and just hoping to get home before their sweethearts marry someone else." John clicked his teeth. "It's not a good place to be."

"They'll want what I know."

"They don't play well when someone wants to 'play hard to get'." John jerked a thumb at the glass behind him. "They'll cut their losses, leave your scientists to die in whatever hole you left them, or they'll just bomb a general area and be done with it for good measure."

"But-"

"And do you know what happens to you?" Grün mimed the gun and John nodded. "Or, they'll hand you over to the surviving Jews and let them tear you to pieces."

"What?"

"There might not even be enough of you left to sweep up afterward but they'll take that risk." Grün blanched and John pushed his chair back to stand. "Major Ross was being polite before but I don't have to protect their reputation so I thought I should tell you the truth. One German to another."

"If you're a German you wear the wrong uniform."

"That's where you're wrong." John tapped his uniform, "This is the uniform that saved Germany my friend. You're the ones who destroyed it. You're the traitors to your country."

He went for the door as Grün called out to him. "Wait!"

John counted three before turning. "Some last request for me?"

"I want their immunity in exchange for the scientists."

"Alive?"

"Of course."

The door opened and John stepped out of the way as Major Ross entered, his white teeth visible with his wide smile. "Then welcome to Operation Paperclip, Herr Grün."

* * *

Kandahar, Present Day

Anna checked her hair in the mirror before stepping back for Gwen to give her a once over. "Think it'll do?"

"If he took you the way you looked in Bangkok then he'll take you now." Gwen tipped Anna's head down slightly, pushing in a final few bobbypins, and then raised her up to smile. "He'll be speechless."

"Hopefully not so speechless he can't say 'I do'."

"If he stumbles over every other vow he'll get that out." Gwen nodded at her and they exited the barracks.

The hot walk to the small chapel on base sent trickles of sweat down Anna's back but she could not find it in herself to care. Gwen managed her own sunglasses and then took Anna's for her before they walked to the front of the makeshift chapel. John stood there in a shirt and tie, where he found either was beyond Anna's comprehension, and could not stop staring at her. Their fingers intertwined as they stood before the chaplain murmuring his way through the words.

"Nervous there?" Gwen leaned around Anna to address the man and he laughed, swallowing. "They're not that frightening."

"I've…" He coughed to clear his throat. "I didn't think I'd be doing one of these while I served my country."

"Better than last rites though, isn't it?" Gwen winked at him, tipping to see the name on his uniform. "Lieutenant Harding I think you'll do just fine and they're too caught up in each other to give you too much guff about it."

"I heard that." Anna shot at Gwen before smiling at Lieutenant Harding. "But she's right, we don't bite."

"Then I think we'd better begin." He collected himself and it was as if someone drew a curtain over the nervous man from the moment before to trade him for the confident man of God who stood before them now. "Dearly beloved, we gather together today to bring together the beautiful souls of John Bates and Anna Smith."

It was the simplest, most beautiful moment Anna could remember having. No lavish party or eloquent phrases while wearing a large white dress. Just the simple white one she found in town, the heart-felt vows she and John exchanged together, and the soulful sermon from Lieutenant Harding. When he finished, the ring fresh on her finger to join the first one John gave her, he smiled at them both.

"You may now kiss one another."

John took a step forward, holding both of Anna's hands in his, and dipped his head down to place his lips gently on hers. They sighed into one another, breaking after a bit when they remembered their audience. With a giggle, she turned to Gwen and they hugged one another tightly before John shook Gwen's hand.

"Thank you for giving her away."

"She's the closest thing I've got to family." Gwen held Anna's arm, hugging close to her again. "We've been inseparable for a long time and it was my pleasure."

"Really?"

"I couldn't give her to anyone less worthy and you, Mr. Bates." Gwen winked at him before turning to the chaplain. "You have another wedding planned for later?"

"They're the only one."

"Then mind getting a drink with me?"

Lieutenant Harding blinked and Anna nudged his shoulder. "It's alright. She doesn't bite either."

"Well," Gwen grinned at him, "Not unless you ask nicely."

Anna laughed, covering her mouth quickly, and almost missed what John whispered in her ear. "If you ask nicely later I might do the same to you."

"Don't play with fire Mr. Bates." Anna warned and then squealed as John hauled her up.

"Is that a warning, Mrs. Bates?" He carried her to the door, pausing before they exited. "I believe I made you a promise about this."

"You did." Anna aimed her foot and managed to kick the door open. "You may proceed."

They ducked into the back of a car, Anna arranging herself in the backseat as John hauled the bulletproofed door shut, and curled their fingers together as they drove off. Weaving through the traffic of the city, the car stopped in front of a hotel and Anna giggled the at the sight of it. John ducked out of his side of the car and offered her a hand to help her out as well.

"When did you arrange this?"

"When I also got you a two-day pass for leave." John kissed her quickly on the cheek before turning back to the driver. "We'll be ready for pick up no later than noon tomorrow Andy."

"I'll be back then." He saluted Anna, "See you tomorrow Major."

"Thank you Corporal." Anna held close to John. "I've not got anything."

"Lieutenant Dawson was helpful for that." John led Anna inside the building, past the lobby, and right into the lift. "You'll have your uniform and everything else you need to go right back to work tomorrow."

"Part of me wishes we'd waited to take holiday to Berlin until we could use it as our honeymoon." Anna leaned her head on his shoulder. "Wouldn't that've been fun?"

"I definitely would've gotten luckier faster." Anna swatted at him as John laughed. "What? You threatened me with the sofa."

"I took pity on you."

"Yes you did." John dipped his head down, capturing her lips with his.

They stumbled out of the lift, almost colliding with a group of men in suits, and managed to recover themselves enough to get to their room. John flashed the card before getting it into the slot so the door opened for them. Once it was closed they held nothing back.

Anna dug her fingers into John's shirt and one of her hands fisted in his tie to drag his lips to hers. Her back hit the door, firmly knocking it in the frame, and John pressed his body along hers to keep her pinned there. A twitch of her hips moved the skirt of her dress up enough to let her leg slide up his thigh.

John's fingers reached down to grip her thigh and hold it tightly to him as he adjusted in their kiss. Their tongues batted against one another, tangling in their energy to try and taste more of one another. Shifting and straining against the door, heedless of whatever noise they were making echoing into the hallway, Anna only stopped her attempt to swallow John whole to take a breath.

He rested his forehead against hers, breathing hard in time with her, before gliding his hands to her waist. It only took a gentle urging from him to have her jump into his arms. With her legs tight about his waist, John pivoted and managed the short walk from the door to the bed.

Laying her back on the surface, not quite the cloud of their Berlin room but still more comfortable than the cot of her billet, Anna looked up at her husband. Her hand traced over his face, following the contours and lines there while urging him to bend over her so their lips could meet again. But he did not sink into her kiss as she planned. Instead he pulled back and set to work trailing through her hair to pull every pin loose.

"Do you remember, that first night, in Bangkok?"

"How could I forget the first time I was your wife?" Anna smoothed her hands over his arms, dipping and tracing where the muscles bunched and stretched with the simple movements of searching and retrieving pins from her hair. "That woman thought I was your prostitute."

"She was confused." John shook his head. "Like I could ever have afforded you as a prostitute."

"It's true." Anna giggled, twitching when John brushed a ticklish spot. "I'd be far too expensive for you."

"Maybe I'd just have to get you to fall in love with my charm and innocence and take enough pity on me to let me seduce you with my awkwardness."

"There are very few things awkward about you." Anna trailed to his hands, allowing him to place hers above her head so he could find the zipper at the back of her dress than an arch of her back revealed. "You're one of the surest men I've ever met."

"Then I'm a better actor than I thought." John kissed along her neck as he slid the zipper down her back. His hands ran over her skin, pressing and kneading into it as he peeled her out of the dress. "Because whenever I'm around you I'm afraid that I've just babbled myself to embarrassment."

"Never." Anna assured him, tugging his tie to pull it over his head and play with his buttons as he freed her from her dress. "You've enthralled me since you 'rescued' me from the Red Light District."

"I'm still shocked you told Robert about that." John laughed, yanking at the skirt to get it off her hips and drape her dress over the chair. "Feck me."

Anna pushed herself up on her elbows, crossing her legs at the ankle to stretch herself out enough so John could see everything. "I bought it in Berlin."

"And you accused me of planning the whole week to seduce you." John could only stare at her in the black lingerie. "I… Feck me."

"You said that already." Anna crooked her finger at him, "And I can only obey your request if you actually get over here."

John leaned over her and Anna set herself to the buttons on his shirt while he tried to distract her with kisses over her neck. She hummed, nails teasing over the skin she exposed until she could finally let the sides of the shirt hang free. Ducking to avoid another kiss, and trading one of her own, Anna set her hands to roam over his chest before letting her lips do the rest. He groaned and stood up straight again to escape her grip.

But Anna just spread her legs and scooted to the edge of the bed so John stood between her knees. Her hands went to his belt, snapping it clear of his trousers as he hurried to work the cuffs of his shirt open. Enough so Anna could get her hand inside his pants and stroke over him.

"Shit." John's shirt clung to one arm, the button still half in the cuff as he threw that hand out to grab the bedside table. "You're going to make me fall over."

"That's the plan." Anna got both hands under the elastic of his waistband and shoved down toward his knees. "There's an edge to manage here."

"Not what I-"

Anna did not allow John to finish his thought. Her hand wrapped around him and she licked at his head. John stuttered, almost knocking into the bed while his fingers tightened to whiten his knuckles on the table he still gripped. She flashed a leer in his direction before letting her lips take him over.

John's ability to get himself out of his shoes, socks, the last cuff on his shirt, and kick away any other encumbering clothing was beyond Anna. Then again, she was enthusiastically occupied with her tongue wrapping caresses around his head. The taste of him, so familiar and yet so infrequent, bloomed on her tongue. Each stroke left him shattered and groaning over her as his fingers dug rivulets into her hair but Anna found herself addicted to his flavor until he jerked harder toward her mouth.

In the moment Anna took to breath, John laid her flat against the bed and spread her legs. His fingers did not even bother to remove her lingerie as he held her wrists above her head and bucked his hips into hers. Anna's eyes fluttered shut at the sensation of him rubbing over her. And the added friction of the lacy knickers designed to drive men mad only had her writhing against him.

He traded his two hands for one, Anna's fingers curling over to hold his hand close to her own, and the other pushed aside her knickers enough to run over her. Each gliding touch left Anna shivering until neither of them could take more. She surged upward, capturing his lips with hers in a desperate plea to urge him forward and faster, and he took her cue to drive himself into her.

They slid over the bed, the friction of the blanket proving no barrier to the force of them. Their hips bucked hard against one another, twisting and rising to try and find the places that would leave them completely sated. Anna brought up one leg, digging her heel into the bed while the other dug into John's ass. His hands left hers to hold her hips still enough to guide his thrusts until the piston of his hips settled into a rhythm. A rhythm that set the beat for their heartbeats and their breathing until they came over the edge together.

Anna clutched John to her, keeping him as close as she could manage, and ran her hands over his skin as if she could memorize him for a recreation later. He sighed into her skin, body moving ever so slightly until Anna let him go. They maneuvered themselves, John using his discarded pants to clean them both up a little, and settled on the bed.

John ran a finger along her bra, chuckling slightly so Anna turned her head to him. "What?"

"When'd you get this?"

"When you were busy in that one store looking through all the old books." Anna tilted her chin down to appraise herself. "It is nice isn't it?"

"I'd be a fool to say no to that comment regardless of what you're wearing but, in this case, I should be committed if I say otherwise."

"Not sure there's a Nutter Center that'll take you." Anna tapped the end of his nose. "But I wish I could thank the clerk. She was sure black would do the trick. Said it was the sexiest of colors."

"There is a bit of seductress to it." John let his fingers wander over the skin from the edge of her bra to the top of her knickers. "But I'd think you were tempting without it."

"I think you're just a fan of my naked body."

"That too." John kissed under her chin, "But I meant it wouldn't matter what color you'd gotten."

"I think it might've." Anna pushed herself up slightly, clawing her fingers through her hair to get all the strands out of her face. "Imagine if it were neon blue."

"Okay, that might've been a bit much." John quirked an eyebrow at her. "What about a deep green?"

"Only if I get the knickers in matching, gaudy orange."

"What?" John frowned and Anna shook her head.

"Call yourself an Irishman?" Anna pointed to the bra, then her stomach, and then her knickers. "Green, white, orange?"

"But that's only if I'm reading you from left to right." John tipped over her body, holding himself perpendicular to her so he could teethe along the line of her knickers. "What if you were laid across the bed the other way?"

"Who lays opposite the pillows?" Anna went to turn but John flattened his hand against her stomach and let his fingers slowly urge her knickers down her legs to leave her open to him. "They're at the headboard for support."

"What if the bed and the door are on the opposite sides?" John lifted one of her legs, twisting under it to kiss the inside of her thigh and toward her center. "That'd make it a bit hard."

"It'd make you a bit hard if I told you I'd mix and match them." Anna tried to tease but John's tongue ran a line from her perineum to her slit and she could only toss her head back onto the pillows. "Bloody hell."

"I hope it doesn't come to that." John trilled against her sink and sank his tongue into her.

"Shit!" Anna arched her back, her shoulders digging into the mattress, and tried to force air into her lungs.

"Language."

"Says the man-" Anna almost bit her tongue when John delved deeper, tasting her from the inside out. When she finally managed to get a breath, Anna ground out the rest of her response. "Says the man who kept repeating 'feck me'."

"You were kind enough to oblige." John ran his tongue up to her clit, sucking it between his teeth while his fingers took the former occupation of his tongue. "I thought I could do the same."

"Charming and considerate." Anna shivered when John added another finger to his efforts. "How'd I get so lucky?"

"I'll ask myself that every day." John sucked hard and Anna came harder.

Her fingers relaxed in the sheets and tipped her head to see John, tracing his fingers over her stomach, watching her. "You've every right to be proud of yourself."

"I'm just grateful." John crawled over her, kissing along her jaw. "I get to be with you for the rest of my life."

"And I get to be with you." Anna pulled herself up, tipping John back onto the bed as she straddled his waist. "My dreamy, journalist husband."

"Not sure if I'd describe myself with dreamy."

"Then it's a good thing I didn't ask your opinion about this." Anna rubbed her thumbs over his cheekbones. "You're everything I could ever want. Everything I'd never even dared to dream about."

"So are you." John kissed her slowly before Anna drew back, unclipping her bra to let it drop back over the side of the bed. "You're… indescribable Anna."

"I've rendered the writer speechless." Anna leaned over him again, her hair curtaining around them. "Lucky me."

"I'm speechless around you all the time." John kissed her again, pulling at her lips and tongue until she broke away. He tipped up, following her as she sat straighter, and kissed over her breasts before sucking a nipple into his mouth.

Anna dug her fingers into his hair, rolling her hips against him to keep him as close to her as she could. His hands held at her hips and her other breast until Anna moaned. In the moment that he paused, trying to give her a self-satisfied grin, Anna pushed him back to the bed and sheathed him in a single stroke.

"Since you're leaving tomorrow," Anna gyrated her hips against him, adjusting to take him even deeper while grinding against her clit. "I want you to remember me like this."

"As a goddess in her passionate glory?" John kept his hands lightly on her hips to steer her movements.

"No," Anna shook her head, nails digging into his chest. "As your wife."

"I couldn't forget that."

"But I want you to remember this," Anna rode harder, digging into his skin as his fingers dug into her hips. "Remember me riding you to completion and hoping this isn't the last time."

John rose up, stopping them long enough for their eyes to meet. "This isn't the end Anna." He held her closer, thrusting deeply into her. "I promise you that."

"I'll hold you to it." Anna pulled his lips to hers, kissing him as they moved together. "Now, please, feck me."

"Happy to oblige."


	13. Born Bold

Kandahar, Present Day

Anna twitched, her forehead creasing slightly, and took a deep breath. A roll of pleasure echoed through her and she whimpered at the thought of opening her eyes. But when an undulation of pleasure rippled over her body she cracked her lids. There, with his body laying perpendicularly across the small and rather stiff mattress, was John. One of her legs draped over his shoulder as his head worked between her thighs. She could barely make out the details of his hair before he left another long lick over her.

Her leg tightened around his shoulder, heel digging into his back as if she could drag him closer. One her of hands, formerly clutching at the pillow, tried to grip his hair but only landed on the skin of his exposed shoulder. Digging in with her nails as his tongue pointed to delve between her folds, Anna huffed and keened at the sensations he sent through her. Her other hand grappled with the mess of the sheets tangled between them and sought for a hold to try and anchor her hips as they started rocking against him.

To his credit, John did not shy away from the bruise she inevitably left on his back with her heel. And he did not relent when her nails left their indentations in his shoulder. The course was set and he heeded nothing but her sounds as he continued to work over her.

His tongue continued to move over her as the hand formerly holding her leg to his shoulder slid along her skin. She undulated around him and gasped out when he stroked her from behind. As his tongue moved higher, circling her clit, his fingers lowered and finally opened her to their questing intentions.

Anna broke then, shattering in a series of gasping cries she tried to keep down as the thought in the back of her mind focused on their location. But with John's fingers now exploring her internal muscles and his tongue painting pleasure over her sparking nerves there was nothing she could do but succumb to it. Succumb to the second building rise that promised even greater pleasure is she could sustain and survive his assault.

An assault that quickly set her heart racing and her blood thundering all the louder in her ears. She could only focus on the tightening of her fingers in the sheets, or the warmth of his skin under her hand, or even a half-hearted attempt at controlling her own breathing. Slowly she realized that she was no longer the master of her own body but the occupant of a cacophony of pleasure provided by her devoted and dedicated husband. A cacophony that gave over to white noise in a moment when his fingers found that spot inside her at the same time his tongue sucked deeply at her clit.

Whatever neighbors were around them, in whatever direction they may be in, could sod off for all she cared in the moment she shrieked her finish. They were the unfortunate individuals who happened to hear the sounds of unrestrained pleasure they were unlucky enough not to have. And Anna could only vaguely shame herself into an apology if her brain were not on fire as it tried to reestablish basic functionality.

Hauling deep breaths into her lungs, she used the hand at John's shoulder to push him backward. He rolled enough to allow her to get her leg around his waist and dragged herself to straddle his chest. The grin he gave her made Anna want to drive him to distraction all the more as repayment.

"Good morning Mrs. Bates."

"If only all mornings started this way." Anna leaned over to kiss him, hoping she could take some of his energy to her boneless body.

Their lips met, tongues slipping around one another in a moment. Her hands cupped his face while her fingers tangled in the hair at the base of his neck. It smoothed and stuck up as she slanted her mouth over his to leave the dark locks a mess of attention and adoration.

Anna pulled back, noting the hint of haze at the corners of John's eyes, and adjusted herself. In a move that surprised her more than him, she reversed her position and placed her mouth over his erection. He shouted something she could only guess was what he wanted them to continue doing, and set her mouth to the task before her.

In an effort to reciprocate his earlier actions, she wrapped her tongue around him and sucked. John's body tensed under hers and one of his hands settled on her hip. The grip dug into her skin and drove Anna to lift from him before licking down. Her hands played over his base and sack, scooting her body forward to gain better leverage when she took him deep into her mouth again.

But instead of allowing her to bring him over the edge, as the promising taste of him on her tongue suggested was in the near future, John pulled her up. Anna turned to face him but she met John's mouth instead, kissing her fiercely as he angled them over the small bed to put his feet on the floor. She raised her hand to his cheek to hold him in the kiss while John's hand went to her breasts.

They arched and writhed against one another, Anna leaning into his hold while moving her hand back to his arousal to squeeze and stroke in time with his actions on her breast. John broke the kiss, stilling her active hand with his other, and just looked at her a moment. In the next he adjusted them so he could slip into her.

Anna closed her eyes, holding them tightly shut against the sensation of John moving deeper and deeper with the spread of her legs over his. His hands helped her legs spread and held them open until they settled solidly against one another. The expansion of his chest against her back mimicked her struggle to breathe past the tingles and rolls of glorious rapture.

But she twisted her hips and gyrated against John to set their bodies in motion. He responded almost immediately, his feet providing the leverage he needed to lift his hips to hers, and matched her pace. Her hand, still at his cheek, pulled them back into a kiss as they increased speed until their panting forced them apart.

She held him close, her hand going between her legs as John's fingers dug bruises into her thighs, and huffed toward the elusive rise of a third climax. One that seemed ever-more possible as her fingers flitted over her clit and accidently rubbed at him when his thrusts pulled him free of her. He grunted into her shoulder, nipping and sucking at the back of her neck in response, and let out a muffled groan as he finished. With the final stutters of his body to guide her, Anna joined him.

They lay back together, turning sideways to try and find a bit more comfort on the restrictively small bed, and Anna pulled one of his arms around her to interlace their fingers. Just breathing together, they stayed in position until the shrill shriek of Anna's phone sounded. Both of them jumped to retrieve it but Anna managed it first.

"I hate this thing." She snapped it off and pushed her hair out of her face, turning back over her shoulder to see John's finger tracing her back and over her ass. "Like what you see Mr. Bates?"

"I rather think I do." He kissed the rise just above her ass before setting his chin there. "What time is it?"

"Half seven."

"You set an alarm for half seven?"

"It's a habit." Anna shrugged, "I didn't want to miss anything."

"We have the room until noon."

"Yes," Anna turned around, putting her fingers under John's chin to lift his lips for her to kiss. "But I know you've not packed and I've got to get back to the infirmary. They'll need my help."

"More women injured?"

Anna shook her head, "Not lately. There was a batch of soldiers that finished up their tours and headed back home so it could be one of them but I did final physicals on all of them and none of them had markers for syphilis."

"So maybe that little crack down Robert initiated while we were in Berlin worked."

"I doubt it." Anna pulled herself off the bed, sorting through her duffle for clothes. "People like this have a pathological need to continue. Whoever it is might only've paused until the heat was off."

"It won't stay off if you find another girl was attacked." John sat up, moving to the edge of the bed.

"Maybe," Anna stopped, holding up a bra. "Were you just looking at my ass?"

"I was helpless against it." John winked at her, "And your legs… and your lower back… that whole area actually."

"Charmer."

"It's why you married me."

"I'm pretty sure I married you for more than just the words you say in a post-coital haze." Anna laid the clothes on a chair. "Although you've got the most expressive vocabulary, which put all other possible contenders to shame."

"I'm a little miffed there were ever other contenders."

"Of course there were." Anna pointed toward the shower. "Want to join me?"

"I'd be a fool to say no to water conservation." John stood and crossed the room fast enough to wrap her in his arms. "Plus, my gloriously naked wife will be in there with me."

"Think you might be getting lucky?"

"I'm already lucky." John snorted, kissing her and then tugging her into the bathroom. "I married you."

* * *

Berlin, 1945

John rubbed his hands together, blowing on them to try and get sensation back. Talbot nudged him and John shrugged, shoving his arms into his armpits to try and keep them warm as they huddled outside the factory. Or what was left of the factory. Half the building lay in a waste as piles of rubble around an indentation mark John recognized from all over the city.

Branson snapped his fingers and both of them turned their heads up to him. He pointed and all three men leaned around the wall to see Ross and Grün coming toward them. Grün massaged his wrists, as if they were sore for some reason and when the glint of handcuffs disappeared into Ross's pocket John understood. They all stood in a confused muddle for a moment as Ross pointed to John.

"I'll need you to translate again for our obstreperous friend here since he's decided to continue his annoying belligerence where my language skills are concerned."

"Does that happen often?" Branson frowned, "Because you seem like a nice enough bloke and I'm curious if maybe there's a side to you that people aren't seeing."

Ross pointed to his face in the darkness lit only by the distant suggestions of lights. "This usually turns them off."

Branson made a show of studying him before shaking his head, "I don't see it."

"Shove off." Talbot pushed at Branson's shoulder and turned to Ross. "Will the Jerry get us to the scientists?"

"If we wants the end of the bargain he worked out with Captain Bates here then he will." Ross put a hand on Grün's shoulder and everyone noted the way the man cringed and tried to escape the hold. "He'll be just as obedient as a well-trained poodle or he'll never see daylight again."

"Planning on burying him in a shallow grave?"

"That or a cell." Ross nodded at John, "It's up to you from here on out."

"Wat me to translate everything you're saying or just make sure he knows what we're all saying?"

"It'd be nice if you'd translate for us what he's saying." Talbot motioned between Branson and himself before pointing at Grün. "If he's insulting me I want a chance to respond back at him."

"Just translate what I say." Ross snorted at Talbot, leading them all to a large truck. "Since he won't respond to my German I won't bother speaking it but you won't have to translate his responses for me. Should cut down on the amount of time we're wasting on air betwixt ourselves."

"Then I've a question," Branson climbed into the driver seat, Talbot with him in the cab while John squeezed Grün between himself and Major Ross to climb into the bed of the truck. "Before we decide on radio silence."

"What?"

"Did you swallow a dictionary at dinner because I'm wondering if it tasted better than the shit on a shingle they served us?"

Talbot, Ross, and Branson all laughed as Grün turned to John. "What did they say?"

"Not sure it's important for you to engage in the conversation." John responded, pulling a belt over him and nodding at the one near Grün. "Wouldn't want you flying out of the back of this thing before you prove your worth to us."

"I'm already worth more to you alive than dead." Grün sneered, his head tipping toward Ross. "Worth more than him, anyway."

"I think his government'd disagree." John waited a beat, "Now get us to where you're stashing the scientists or we'll find a pile of rubble for your body so they don't find it in a hurry."

Grün paled slightly and pointed. "That street. Take it until you hit where they destroyed the market and then left."

John repeated the instructions to Branson and they were off.

The trip through the city was an adventure of dodging destruction, cleanup, and reconstruction. Even for as dark as it was, their headlights only just managing to split the light into dusky quadrants, shadowy figures still milled through the destruction. Those trying to search for lost items, scrounge from others, or simply find a place to sleep fought the chill and the danger in their various states of desperation.

Soon they bumped from the city and down a pitted road toward the forest. They flitted through the trees, noting the pockmarks of bombs and artillery on their way that now served as temporary refuge for any refugees making their way into the city from the countryside. A countryside with nothing to offer those who had nothing to give it.

John shook his head, settling in his seat to continue giving the sparse instructions to Branson until they reached a dead end on the path. Grün nodded toward the roadside and John tapped Branson's shoulder. "We're walking now."

Killing the engine, and the lights, plunged them into darkness. John left his seat, bringing Grün with him, and reached the tailgate. Before he could let it down, a weight crashed on his shoulders. John stumbled sideways and fell from the back of the truck landing hard to sprawl on the roadside while knocking the air from his lungs. Struggling to breathe, he forced his mind and body to calm enough to allow shallow breaths to inflate his starving lungs.

After a moment he could wheeze and went to sit up until another weight landed on his chest. Hands grappled toward his neck and wrapped around it as if to squeeze the weak tendrils of air he only barely recovered. John fought with his hands, scrambling and scrabbling in the dark with the body over him, and finally raised his knee hard enough and fast enough to land it in the center of the man's back.

He flew over John's shoulder, landing hard just as a set of torches blinded John and the other man. Grün tried to get to his feet but Branson's weight knocked into his middle and landed him on the ground again in an odd tableau replaying the events from John's life only a second before. Talbot's hand, the one not holding the torch so Branson could wrestle with Grün, helped John to his feet and leaned him against the side of the truck.

"Alright mate?" John could only raise a hand, still trying to get air into his lungs, and Talbot nodded long enough to join Branson in the struggle to subdue Grün again.

"I knew the prick would try something."

"What?" John wheezed as Ross came to his side, unlocking the handcuffs before tossing them to Talbot to wrap over Grün's wrists again.

"I just had a feeling our little Nazi friend here wasn't going to be so gracious as to actually let us take this easy." Ross shook his head, holding up a torch to blind John once again as he examined him. "He could've concussed you."

"What he did was more than enough." John winced as he moved. "What'd he hit me with?"

"His fists, far as I can tell." Ross went over to Grün and grabbed him with one hand while the other passed his torch to Branson. "Listen to me you little shit. If you try that again, or lead us into a trap, I'll make sure the first hole I blow in someone's head'll have you name on it. Understand?"

Grün only tried to spit in Ross's face but the other man dodged it and jammed his elbow hard into Grün's stomach. Grün fell back onto his ass, coughing as Ross pulled out his pistol and placed it on Grün's forehead. The man froze, his whole body caught mid-wheeze at the sensation of cold metal against his skin.

"I'm not playing around here. You're deal only holds if you help us find those scientists." He pulled the hammer back and all five men went still. "I'm not afraid to pull this if I think, even for a second, you'll try anything else that stupid. Do I make myself clear?"

Grün nodded and Ross withdrew the pistol, putting the hammer back in position and smiling. "Then I guess you can lead us to whatever secret bunker you've got hidden out here now can't you?"

Talbot and Branson lifted Grün between them, Talbot passing John his torch as Ross took the one from Branson, and they continued following Grün's instructions deeper into the forest. Just as they lost sight of the truck they found a footpath, trod with a number of military boots and bearing the signs of Nazi motorcycle tires that put a slightly encouraging thought into John's head. But when they reached the large steel door guarding the entrance to the aforementioned bunker, a chill ran down his spine.

Ross traded places with Talbot, who managed to get the door opened and shined his torch down the hallway. He nodded and pushed the door all the way open before joining the rest of them. John stepped between Branson and Talbot, grabbing Grün's shoulder, and pushed him forward.

"I'm sure none you'll object to the idea of a body shield in this case."

"After you then." Branson took position at John's back with Talbot holding up the rear as Ross fell into place between the other two men.

They headed down the tunnel, lights from Talbot, Branson, and Ross shining over John's shoulders to light enough of their way. As they reached the first fork, Grün turned them left and they took a ladder down a level. Now they could hear noises, the distant snores and snorts of sleep, but John kept a tight hold on Grün.

"Makes me wish I brought something with a few more bullets than this." Branson hissed from behind John, nudging him in the back with the profile of his pistol. "What if those are Nazis in that room and not innocent scientists?"

"Then we're well and truly buggered." Talbot responded from the back. "I left the big gun in the truck."

"That's why he's going first." John pushed Grün toward the door where the noises emanated and signaled for the others to point their torches at the ceiling and further down the corridor as he reached around Grün to open the door.

The lights flooded the room and John moved Grün forward enough to locate a light switch on the wall. The torches extinguished to reveal a room of blinking men and a few women. They all scrambled to stand up, shivering and huddling together as they could as the five new men entered the room.

John passed Grün back to Ross for a moment and turned to the woman nearest to him, still in the midst of drawing the thin blanket from the cot she just occupied to wrap over herself, and spoke in German. "Why are you here?"

"We work here." She pointed to Grün. "He's out commander."

"Are you with the Reich?" She nodded and John took a breath. "Are you a soldier?"

"There's only been him for the last few weeks. We don't know what happened to the others."

"What's your job here?"

"We're here working for the Führer to further his program for space travel." Another man offered before the smaller man next to him shoved an elbow into the man's ribs. "He needs us to reach space."

"Space?" John's eyebrows rose and turned to Ross. "I thought he had access to atomic scientists."

"We do that research as well." The woman in front of him volunteered and John nodded. "We're his personal scientists. I followed whatever fits of fancy he had worked on his passion projects."

"Do you have the research for your… passion projects?" John frowned at the words and the woman nodded. "Would you be willing to give over the information in exchange for your freedom?"

"Freedom from here?"

John nodded, "And a chance to go to America and give them your knowledge."

The woman turned to her fellows in the room and John noted the nods and shakes. But the nods had it and the woman addressed John again. "If you can get us out of this hellhole we'll help you however we can."

"Perfect." John turned to Talbot and Branson. "Think you could get yourselves back to the truck and take them with you?"

"Sure." Branson shrugged, "But you should probably keep me here with you, Grün, and this lovely lady because neither Henry nor I manage German."

John turned to Ross, who nodded and shoved Grün toward him. "I'll take them back to the truck and you get the research. We want all of it or a way to destroy it so no one else gets it. Understood?"

Keeping a firm hold on Grün, John and Branson followed the woman from the dormitory to a lower level. She motioned toward the workrooms and then wrapped her arms over her chest. "I don't know how you could get all of this away from here."

John turned to Branson but the other man already sprinted down the corridor to the stairs that led him back to the dormitory. As he turned back toward the woman he had to wrench Grün back as he hissed in the woman's direction.

"You're a traitor, Fraulein Schlegel."

"I'm many things, Sturmbannführer Grün, but I'm no traitor." She addressed John. "I'm only half-German."

"So am I." He nodded at her. "My father was from Munich."

"My father was from Strasbourg but my mother was British." She sighed, "I wish I'd not come to visit before the war."

"Were you-"

"I was trying to make peace with my sister, we'd had a fight, and I was trapped here when they closed the borders." She shrugged, "It was all efforts for the Fatherland and my skills were put to use in the Führer's science programs." She pointed down the corridor to where Branson led the confused scientists with him. "Like most of them."

John addressed Branson, "Did you tell them what we want?"

"I think Ross did." Branson shrugged, "I don't speak German, remember?"

"They're aware of the request." Ross turned to the group. "Just collect the research you deem most valuable. I trust your judgment we won't have to shuffle through useless notes if you're the ones choosing what's coming."

The scientists scrambled into their workrooms to gather everything they could or thought they needed, arguing back and forth until they finally reemerged with the documents, files, notebooks, and papers clutched tightly to them. Talbot led them back toward the exit while John, Branson, Grün, and Ms. Schlegel took up the rear.

"Will you be staying in Berlin then?" John asked Ms. Schlegel as they followed the train of scientists.

"I'm hoping I can get an interview with the British Embassy. I'll try and get back to England as soon as possible but I do want to try and see if my sister is alright."

"Do you know where she was?" John frowned, forcing Grün forward as the man tried to stall them on the stairs. "Perhaps she's already back in Britain."

"It's possible but there's not much I can do while here. I'll have to get back to my aunt and brother before I can do anything." She motioned to herself with the notebooks in her arms. "I'm not much by way of means in the world in my current position."

"None of us are much in those terms." John held Grün back and allowed her out of the bunker first. "But I wish you luck with finding your sister."

"Thank you."

They trailed back through the forest, Ross setting markers in the trees as they went to try and mark the path back, and finally reached the truck. Between Branson and Talbot the scientists loaded into the rear and the five men addressed their situation.

"I think it'd make it worse for them if he stayed back there." John jostled Grün in his hold. "So I'll take the cab with Branson."

"Perfect." Talbot winked up at Ms. Schlegel, who turned a tinge red in the gray of oncoming morning. "Gives me some time to practice my German."

"You don't speak German." Branson argued but Talbot shrugged and gave Ross a hand up before pulling himself into the seat next to Ms. Schlegel. Branson jerked his thumb at Talbot, speaking to John. "He doesn't speak German."

"It's all in the motivation." John shoved Grün forward. "Everything is about the right motivation."

"I didn't realize Henry liked carrots that much." Branson started the engine and nodded toward Grün, "Or that this one would need so much stick."

"He is a little shit, isn't he?" John shook his head at Grün's scowl. "But at least we're rid of him."

"A better gift for Christmas I couldn't ask." Branson turned the truck around. "Now let's get them back to Berlin eh?"


	14. Castle on a Hill

Kandahar, Present Day

Anna lifted the flap of the tent and ducked under to see John putting the last of his things into their respective cases. "You do impress me."

"Because I can pack at the last minute?"

"Because you're not just throwing things into a bag and praying the zipper works." Anna pointed at his neat cases. "That's expert care there."

"I'm an expert packer." He closed the last thing and took a turn around the sparse tent. "It's almost surreal."

"Which part?" Anna sat on the cot and waved her hand at the tent. "The barrenness of this or the fact you're going back with a ring on your finger?"

"Both, in a way." John sat next to her, taking her left hand with his and kissing over her fingers. "It'll be hard, being without you for six more months."

"I know." Anna kissed the back of his hand before using her free one on his jaw to allow her to kiss his cheek. "But now you get to write from the perspective of the house husband missing his wife. You've joined an exclusive club you know."

"I know." He added his other hand to caress over her wrist. "Doesn't make it any less hard."

"Well," Anna swung her legs up onto his lap, scooting over to sit there as her hands looped around his shoulders. "I'm sure you could find a way to manage for yourself. They've got lube and other things to help with that problem."

John buried his head in her neck, kissing and sucking there as Anna squealed and tried to fight him back. He pulled back and they stared at one another a moment before Anna planted her lips on his. They wrapped their arms around one another, moving sinuously through and around appendages to hold the other as tightly to them as they could manage. Anna adjusted her position to straddle his legs and held tightly at his hips with her knees as if she could secure herself there.

"How about one to take with me?" John murmured against her ear, trailing kisses from there to her jaw to ring her neck with his attentions. "Before the car comes."

"I thought you were taking the military flight." Anna sighed into him, her hand delving into his hair to hold him close as he continued kissing at her neck while his hands worked into her jacket.

"I am but they don't want to risk me getting lost on the way to the plane." John hummed against her skin, hands slipping under her shirt to caress her breasts through her bra. "Robert's afraid I might hide myself away so I'm stranded here with you."

"Must think you love me or something." Anna shifted against John, holding herself tighter to him when his hips bucked toward hers. "We won't have much time."

"If you don't mind it a little rough and-"

"Hard and fast is fine." Anna pulled his lips back to hers while sliding her body back off his legs. "Faster the better."

"I'm still a gentleman." John caught her shirt, his arm turning inside it to tug Anna back toward him so his other hand could open her belt and trousers. "And while you're not wearing the lovely set from the other night, I do still know my way around the inside of your knickers."

"If I'd known we were planning this I wouldn't have worn any." Anna put her hands on John's shoulders to bring herself over him as his hand snuck inside the lining of her knickers to rub at her clit. "Should've realized."

"Probably." John lifted his head to kiss under her chin as his fingers drew lines down and around her folds. "But it'd make you bloody uncomfortable for the rest of the day."

"And having you dripping out of me or wearing soaked knickers isn't going to be uncomfortable on it's own?" Anna laughed into his kiss before gasping.

"It'll be a little less obvious because you won't be wearing a wet spot in your uniform." John eased a finger inside, scissoring a moment to open her for a second finger as Anna's nails formed divots on his scalp. "But I'll let you be the judge of that."

"You'll have sex hair all the way back to England."

"A cross I'll gladly bear." John squeezed at her breast under her shirt and his thumb pressed at her clit. "You're almost ready."

"Just make me come already so I can get you inside me." Anna grabbed his wrist with one hand and steered his actions while her other yanked his hair just enough to bring their lips back together. "We've not got time to dawdle."

"Your wish is my command." John tweaked her nipple through her bra and stroked that spot inside Anna's walls.

She covered her shriek in John's shoulder, biting at the fabric of his shirt to try and keep the volume down while her body shook through the finish. John continued gliding over her, feeding the fading ripples until Anna collapsed against him. His hands kept her from toppling to the floor while his lips painted a trail over her exposed skin.

Anna forced herself to stand, risking her trembling legs, and shoved her trousers and knickers down to her knees. Her fingers crunched in John's shirt to pull him up before she pivoted to bend over the cot. With her hands spread and her legs widened as much as bounds of her trousers would allow, Anna turned over her shoulder to look at John.

"Something keeping you?"

"One should always take the time to appreciate fine art." John put his hands on her ass, squeezing and massaging there until Anna's whole body practically vibrated with pleasure.

"We've not got the time."

"I'm not just going to rut you like-"

"Like a prostitute you picked up in the Bangkok Red Light District?" Anna laughed and then bit her lip as John thrust forward. "Oh bugger."

"That's the plan." John drew back, his hands light on her hips and ass as he held to the edge. "Hard and fast?"

"Please."

He set a punishing pace, squeaking the cot across the floor until it hit the tent wall. Anna could almost laugh at the event but her focus was entirely on keeping herself from toppling over. Her arms bent to right angles and she held herself there with deep breaths while focusing on the sensation of John working over her.

The addition of his fingers to her clit and his hand questing under her shirt again draped him over her back so he could whisper in her ear. "Next time we do this, we'll be in a real bed."

"Yes please." Anna closed her eyes, trying to see it.

"It'll be in a room where we're the only ones around. No more hotel rooms or offices or-"

"Never?" Anna could have laughed at the way his breath caught in his throat at the suggestion. "Because I've got an office in Harrogate and-"

"You naughty girl." He sped up, abandoning his hold at her breast to grasp her hip to better meet his thrusts. "Tempting me like that when I'm trying to paint a romantic picture."

"You… started… it." Anna shoved back toward John, knees bending to try and add leverage to her position. "Who's house?"

"Have you got one?"

Anna laughed, forcing it past the lacking air in her lungs. "We need to work these things out."

"They'll be time for that." John continued drawing all the way out before driving back in as deeply as he could. "We'll work it all out."

"Yes," Anna turned her head to catch his lips with hers. "Yes we will."

John pressed at her clit in time with a slight shift in his stance to hit that spot inside her that sent Anna over the edge again. He followed soon after, their bodies rocking and bumping together in the final stutters of their mutual climaxes. His left hand landed over hers and Anna curled the fingers toward her to hold tighter to him as they settled.

A honking noise from outside broke their kiss and both turned their heads toward the tent. John shoved himself back fast enough to almost trip over the floor but he caught himself on the edge of the table. He hissed when it hit his hip and Anna tried not to laugh as she pulled her trousers and knickers back into place.

"Are you alright?"

"Just… dinged myself." John rubbed hard at his hip and upper thigh. "That'll leave a nasty bruise."

"In other circumstances I might not prescribe this." Anna came to him, stopping his hands from pulling his trousers closed. Instead she held them open enough to slide them down his legs and kiss the spot. As she stood she pulled his trousers together and did them up for him. "For the pain you understand."

"Isn't that a conflict of interest?" John put his hand to her jaw, running his thumb there as they stared at one another. "You trying to be my doctor seems a bit unethical."

"Maybe." Anna shrugged and went to kiss him but a honking horn startled them. "I think your ride is a bit anxious to get going."

"What if I just told them to sod it?"

"Then you'd be out of a job." Anna brushed his cheekbone with her own thumb. "You've got to go back."

"I don't want to."

"And I don't want you to go."

John swallowed, "How about a kiss to take with me?"

"Greedy bastard." Anna whispered and their lips collided. Her fingers tightened on his shirt and in his hair before pulling back. "I don't regret it. Not a single minute of it."

"Me either." John nodded toward the tent flap. "I need to go."

"I know." Anna forced their lips together one more time, harder than all the others to leave them both breathless. "I love you, John Bates."

"And I love you, Anna Bates." John kissed her forehead before breaking away to grab his things.

Anna watched him leave the tent and followed him to the doorway as he loaded into the car. He raised his hand to her before the door closed and she nodded, playing with the ring on her finger. The ring she removed a moment later to replace on the leather line around her neck.

With the ring tucked under her uniform, and snorting to herself at the slightly sticky sensation between her legs, Anna headed toward the infirmary.

* * *

Berlin, 1945

John opened his eyes with a start as a hand settled on his shoulder. He smiled at Anna, taking the cup she placed in his hands before scooting over on the wooden bench to allow her to sit next to him. She laid her hand over his left one, her fingers stroking over the ring there, and laid her head on his shoulder.

"They said you found all those people."

"Grün must've really wanted to get his freedom." John sipped the contents of the cup, grimacing at the taste. "It'll be nice when they stop watering down their tea in those disgusting bags."

"It destroys it." Anna pulled his left hand from the cup, holding it with her left, and laid them on his thigh. "I much preferred those blends you always had from Yorkshire when we worked together at the newspaper office."

"Those were simpler times." John took another sip before laying the cup to the side. "Where's Johann?"

"Your Mr. Talbot and Mr. Branson are showing him how to play some card games they learned from some Americans." Anna smiled, "I don't think they realize he's… what's the word?"

"Hustling them." John interlaced their fingers, drawing his thumb along her fingers to feel them. "I imagine you taught him to play."

"There was little else to do on nights when the sirens went off and we'd cram ourselves into the basement of the building." Anna sighed, "It is what you do when you're trying to find hope."

"I'm so sorry."

"No," Anna shook her head, putting her free hand on his shoulder. "We need to stop being sorry. Stop apologizing to one another for the mistakes of the past that weren't our fault."

"But I could've-"

"Even if you think over everything you could've done or all that we didn't do we'll come back to the same conclusion." Anna put her finger under his chin to force him to look at her. "That we're alive. That we're here now. That we've a son. That we're going to continue building a life together despite all the best efforts of the Führer and his Reich. We are still here, John."

"Yes." John leaned his forehead against hers. "Yes we are."

They sat together in silence for a few moments before John shifted again, blinking hard. "I'm going to fall asleep here if I don't move."

"You already fell asleep here once." Anna giggled, pushing hair back from his head. "Why don't you go back to my cot and sleep?"

"It'll be too lonely without you."

"I'm sure it would be." Anna brushed through his hair. "But you need rest and I've my interview with Major Ross."

"Interview?"

"It's for show, so he says, to authorize m de-Nazification." Anna shrugged, "He says we'll probably just talk about where I'll live in England once I'm free of this and which schools I'll look into for Johann."

"Not England." John shook his head and kissed Anna's hand when she frowned. "There'll be… too much bad blood between English and German for a long time to come. I don't want to risk you, or Johann, struggling just to cross a street."

"Surely you don't want us in America."

"Heavens no." John shuddered. "No one should have to live in that godsforsaken place."

"Don't be so cruel." Anna swatted at him. "I'm sure it's a lovely country."

"It'll have many of the same prejudices."

"Everywhere will have them." Anna shrugged, "It's the way of the world after a war. There is nowhere you could go that would be left untouched."

"Maybe there is." John smiled at her, reaching over to stroke over her cheek. "I've got an uncle, in Scotland, who's willing to let me live there."

"Scotland?" Anna laid her head on his shoulder, taking a deep breath before speaking again. "They say the Highlands there are the most like Germany."

"That'll make it easier to adapt there."

Anna frowned, "But not the accents of the people there."

John laughed again, "You're right. That might be a bit difficult for you and Johann." He held her closer. "But you'll be alright. And it'll be better there. Further away from the war and anyone who'll be angry about it."

"We're angry about it John." Anna turned her head to him. "We can't get away from that."

"But we can find a place of our own." John kissed her forehead. "We can make a place for ourselves there."

"And your uncle is alright with us living in his house?"

John winced, "It's… It's more of a castle, actually."

"A castle?"

"It's an old manor house, for my mother's clan, but-"

Anna put her finger over John's lips, shushing him before kissing him. "I was alright when you said we'd live in a castle."

"Then you wouldn't mind living in Scotland?"

"I'm sure Johann would love to pretend to be a knight in a castle."

"Mrs. Bates?" John and Anna turned their heads to see Ross. He waved at them, "I'm ready to start your interview, Mrs. Bates."

"Thank you." Anna stood, her left hand still connected to John's.

"For what, Mrs. Bates?"

"Because you called me 'Mrs. Bates'." Anna smiled, releasing John's hand, and faced Major Ross. "You're only the second person who has ever called me that."

"Then I'm glad to be the second one." Major Ross nodded at John, "I'll assume you were the first."

"I was." John nodded at Anna, "I'll be here when you finish."

Anna followed Major Ross into the room and John rested his head back on the wall, closing his eyes to remember when he called Anna 'Mrs. Bates'.

* * *

 _Berlin, 1939_

 _John smiled, holding Anna's hand as they stood in front of the minister. He read out the vows to them in Latin and German, Anna and John responding in kind as he continued. They could not stop staring at one another, occasionally taking a few more seconds and some hints from the minister, and placed their rings with shaking hands. But once they were seated, John leaned forward to finally kiss Anna when the minister allowed it._

 _At the first opportunity, John swept Anna into his arms and walked down the aisle of the Lutheran church to the doors. They paused there and Anna, her arms wrapped around his shoulders, leaned over to kiss him before kicking her legs to have him let her down. John took her left hand with hers to lead them outside into the sunlight._

 _Except it was raining. John and Anna ducked together, running for a cab, laughing as they hurried into the backseat of the car. Stumbling through the address John wanted, he leaned back to hold Anna close to him. He brushed damp strands of hair from her face and kissed her again._

 _"_ _How does it feel?" John whispered to her, in English so the driver could not hear._

 _"_ _How does what feel?" Anna leaned into him, her hand over his heart, and responded in English as well._

 _"_ _How does it feel to be 'Mrs. Bates'?"_

 _"_ _I feel like I'm the person I was always meant to be." Anna leaned up to kiss him. "I love being 'Mrs. Bates' and I want you to continue calling me that."_

 _"_ _I'll call you that until I'm dead and buried." John kissed her again, only stopping when the driver made a noise in his throat. "I think he's a little uncomfortable with this."_

 _"_ _He can stand to be jealous." Anna pulled John's lips back to hers and leaned back to bring John's body over hers. "I'm a married woman and I'm going to enjoy it."_

 _They eventually separated before they reached the flat and John paid the driver before they darted through the rain to the door. Fumbling with the key a moment, John managed to open the door and got them through the lobby to the lift. A lift that they used to kiss in the corner as they moved up the floors toward their flat. Another place that allowed John a chance to fumble the keys again when Anna distracted him with kisses on his neck. Stumbling through the door finally allowed them to be alone._

 _John closed the door, locking it to keep them away from the world, and faced Anna. She smiled at him, walking backward toward their room as she pulled the pins from her hair. It toppled and sagged a bit with the rain but John still noted the shine._

 _He followed, leaving his jacket and shoes in their sitting room, cufflinks tinkling on the little dresser at the end of the short hallway to their room. Anna, continuing to manage her careful, backward steps, left her jacket on a doorknob and undid the buttons on her blouse. One by one they opened, her slightly see-through shirt leaving her body and her skirt to hang on the knob to their door. A knob Anna opened to lead him inside._

 _His shirt tugged over his head, socks wrangling and twisted near the door before his belt thunked to the floor. Anna's shoes mimicked the sound as she left them and her nylons a step away from where her skirt dropped to the floor. John's trousers thumped into a pile just short of the bed as he climbed it to reach where Anna had lain herself over the duvet._

 _In the quiet, broken only by the patter of the rain on the windows, John stared down at Anna. His hand found her left to bring it to his mouth and kiss the ring there. "I love you, Anna."_

 _"_ _I know." She smiled up at him, lifting herself to bring their lips even. "And I love you, John Bates."_

 _John kissed her, pressing her back to the bed, and set to his task. Her hands eased into his hair, ran over his chest, and scraped over his shoulders while he worked his way down her body. Her brassiere hit the floor, possibly joining one of the piles of clothing they left there but John barely noticed or cared to check. Instead he dedicated all of his attentions to mouthing around Anna's breasts and following the verbal signals of keens and whimpers before they dissolved into moans as he ran his tongue over her belly button._

 _Nipping at her knickers allowed him to lead them down her legs with his teeth, giving him a grin to match the shivers running through Anna's body. He kissed his way back up her legs, spreading them wider with his shoulders, and finally kissed her folds. They slicked as he worked, sliding through his lips and teeth before coating his tongue when he delved it deep. Adding his fingers brought her over once and when his tongue wrapped her clit to suck there, she fell again._

 _With her gasping for air, moaning at the caress of his tongue licking over her, John rose up to leave his pants on the floor. Her hand flailed out to wrap around him and her legs widened to pull him closer. John thrust forward in a moment and held there until Anna's hips moved. He followed her guidance to move and stroke when she needed it._

 _The sound of her third climax, rippling through her and clamping her vaginal walls to cling around him, sent John to finish. He worked her through the final stutters of his body and barely caught himself before his weight crushed her. They wrangled themselves sideways and John smiled at her._

 _She smiled back, putting her lips to his. "I'm now fully, Mrs. Bates."_

 _"_ _If that was all it took then you were already Mrs. Bates." John grinned and kissed the hint of a scowl from Anna's face. "But I know what you mean."_

 _Anna let her hand run over his chest, trailing nonsensical lines there before meeting his eyes again. "We will take care of one another, won't we?"_

 _John cupped her jaw with his hand. "I plan on doing nothing else for the rest of my life."_

 _She snuggled closer to him, her head going to his shoulder. "Me either."_

 _Kissing the top of her head, John closed his eyes and held her close._

* * *

Berlin, 1945

John opened his eyes and returned the grin splitting Anna's face wide. "What is it darling?"

She held up a piece of paper. "I'm divorced." John was almost out of his seat before Anna put a hand to his shoulder. "From Alex. Major Ross pulled strings and officially divorced me from him. Now all we've got to do is have our marriage recognized by the State and we're-"

John pulled Anna close and clutched her tightly to him. The tears leaked from his eyes, dropping into her hair as her fingers clawed into his shirt to keep him in her embrace. They rocked together a moment before separating to wipe the tears from the face of the other.

"Take me somewhere John." She whispered, brushing a final tear from his face. "Somewhere we can be alone."

"I don't-" John scanned the hallway to note an office with the light off. Taking her hand he hurried them inside it, closing the door with a thump and locking it tightly before putting Anna's back to it so he could kiss her.

"Desk," Was all she could manage to say before John lifted her into a pivot to put her ass on the surface. Papers and supplies hit the floor and slid over the surface but they did not care.

John hurried to work his trousers free as Anna unbuttoned his shirt to hold onto his chest, skin to skin so his heartbeat could thud against her hand. She clamped her hand to the back of her neck and dragged him to her lips while her other hand pushed herself off the desk so John could drag her knickers off her legs. With them flicked to the side, landing somewhere they would need to remember in a few moments, John's fingers set to work.

Anna tried to mask her moans in his mouth, her tongue trying to assert dominance over his mouth while he set her hips rocking into his hand. But a few well-placed crooks of his fingers, her clinging walls, and his thumb thrumming at her clit, left her screaming into his mouth. He moved his hands to her ass, holding her there as her legs wrapped his waist to bring them together in a single thrust.

They both allowed a shudder to move through them, shaking against one another as Anna rocked and gyrated against him. John dug his fingers into her skin, grinning against her mouth at the thought of bruises on her ass where only he could see… and possibly later kiss, and met her pace. Soon all she could do was keep up and came again with her hand between them to find the place she needed more than anything else. And when she did, John came too.

They held to one another, breathing in the silence of the room.

After a moment John raised his head and snickered at the desk, "We've made a mess of it."

"It's fine." Anna ran her hands over his face, pushing his hair from his forehead. "We're fine. It's all going to be fine."

"We're going to have a home, Anna." John moved sticky strands of hair from her face. "We're going to be together forever."

"Yes, yes we will."


	15. Victorious

Berlin, 1945

John patted Johann's shoulder and urged him forward. They joined the lines loading into the backs of the trucks. Two of them pulled away, filled with the scientists and driven by Talbot and Branson, respectively. Ross checked off names as they filled another truck and signaled it away before pointing to the last, smaller truck.

"It's all we've got I'm afraid. It'll be you three, Grün, and Ms. Schlegel. Otherwise they're all away to other camps, France, and eventually on home."

"They didn't want the deals?" John asked, helping Anna into the truck before lifting Johann to her.

"They decided that Germany's their home and we respect that." Ross shrugged, "We had people looking over a lot of their research and only a few of them would qualify for de-Nazification anyway. The rest of them were doing grunt work."

"Not worth the bother?"

"It was the equivalent of arresting a farmer for growing potatoes the Nazis bought." Ross shook his head, "Ms. Schlegel's work, on the other hand, was a bit damning but we worked out her plan."

"She working with you?"

"And the Brits. She'll go back to London, where her sister already is, ironically, and work from there." Ross sighed, "It's a messy business Bates but we're glad we had you on our side for it."

"Glad to help." John smiled at Anna and Johann. "I had a bit of a personal stake in the matter."

"All about the motivation, am I right?" Ross hit his shoulder before grimacing. "Here comes the piece de resistance."

John turned to see Grün and Ms. Schlegel making their way towards them. "I've got so many emotions about this."

"It's over, that's all that matters." Ross pointed to the other man trailing behind Grün and Ms. Schlegel. "And our insurance."

"Who?"

"His name's Gregson… or it will be once we get him to Washington." Ross leaned over to whisper to John, "He was one of the big ones. In charge of a lot of… less than savory projects because they held his wife and daughter hostage."

"What happened to them."

Ross shook his head, "Shot. Far as we could tell it was a purge and he turned over everything he had as quickly as he could manage."

"Good man."

"Broken man." Ross pointed to the back. "Ms. Schlegel's taking the front with Slade and me while you'll be in the back with the other two."

"My family will be in the back with the other two, you mean?"

Ross winced, "It's not the optimal situation but-"

"It's the price we pay." John extended a hand to the approaching Mr. Gregson. "Pleasure to meet you."

"Not sure what pleasure it is." He returned John's shake and climbed in to take the seat opposite Anna and Johann while Ms. Schlegel made herself comfortable in the front of the truck.

Between Ross and John they managed to get the handcuffed Grün into his seat. Ross went to the front while John strapped the man into the tiny seat before taking the one next to Johann. The boy looked between Grün and John before turning to his mother.

She smiled at him, rubbing his shoulder and holding him close to her as Grün only glared. "Don't pay him any mind."

"Why not?" Grün adjusted, clinking in his seat. "I'm his father."

"You'll find that's no longer true." Anna held her head higher. "The new government was happy enough to annul the marriage once they recognized I was already married to someone else."

"Who?" Grün snorted, laughing to himself before he realized Anna turned to John. "Him?"

"We married before he left Germany. The government's recognized it."

"Then the child between you's a bas-"

"I think you'll want to watch what you say if you intend to continue." John leaned forward and Grün slid back. "Another opportunity for you to be disappointed I think."

"What, is he yours?"

"If you would all please stop talking." All eyes turned to Gregson, his eyes moist as he stared at the family across from him. "Whatever you say the boy will hear. He's smart and you're all speaking in German."

"It's the language of the Reich."

"It's the language of murderers and butchers." Gregson snapped at Grün. "Our new language is English and we'll embrace that."

"Sir," Anna's soft voice broke through the moment. "Johann's English is not that good yet."

"Then he'll learn it." Gregson nodded at Johann. "I'm sure you intend to raise him where they already despise people like us so the sooner you teach him to speak like them the less ridicule he'll receive."

They all quieted, the rumble of the truck starting having them all reach for a hold when it jerked to move. It trundled up the road in the early morning light and broke the silence with occasional belches and rattles when a pot hole or branch blocked their way. But it was a lullaby, in its way, that soon had Johann drifted off on his mother's shoulder and her head resting on his.

John stayed alert, thoughts meandering through his head as he gazed at his family. Reaching out a finger, tentatively, he brushed a loose strand of Johann's hair that fell over his forehead. Hair so much like his as it fell in the same way.

"You think he'll accept you as his father?" John left his hand drop, noting Grün grinning at him. "Think he'll accept the man responsible for the destruction of his home?"

"I imagine he'll prefer a father who supports and loves him instead of a groomer hoping to feed him to a cannon on a war front." John's lip curled, "Or turn him into a purist ready to slaughter people for praise."

"You think that's all there is to me?"

"What else could there be to a man who was rank and file with the blackest of the black hearts who ran this regime?" John shook his head, "You're nothing more than a believer in a rotten religion that, thankfully, no longer exists."

"Because you killed or jailed our leaders?"

"That would tend to be sufficient."

Grün chuckled, playing with his handcuffs. "You all think it's a snake that you can just behead and leave to shrivel and die in the sun."

"Isn't it?"

"It's like the famed beasts of Greek myth. It's the hydra, the chimera, the gorgon." Grün hissed at John, "More heads will grow because all you've done is drive them to the ends of the earth. We will amalgamate until we create a better whole, and when you look on us then you'll be petrified with fear."

"You tried that once and what happened?" Gregson's voice was soft but held an edge. "They destroyed you. They'll do it again. Evil like yours never lasts."

"I think you don't understand the ways of the world, mein herr." Grün went to say something else but Ross turned from his seat and clicked his teeth at them.

"Quiet, all of you. We're reaching a roadblock."

They rolled to a stop and Ross hopped from the cab to speak to the uniformed officers there. John leaned around Anna, careful of Johann's shift to lay his head on John's side, to note the uniforms of the officers were neither American nor British but Russian. He exchanged a look with Ms. Schlegel and Mr. Gregson before moving smoothly back to his seat.

But Grün had no such plans. He shifted and lunged for John, catching him under the jaw with both fists. John grabbed Grün's wrists, wrestling him to the floor of the cab, and put a hand over the other man's mouth. He held there, pressing an arm to Grün's throat until the man's eyes widened, and released when they closed. Checking quickly at his pulse, John pulled Grün back into his seat as a Russian soldier peered into the back of their truck.

John swallowed, a feeble attempt to moisten his dry mouth, but someone spoke before he could. Slade joined the officer, explaining the situation in Russian until the man nodded and walked back toward the front of the truck to finish with Ross. With a nod, Slade joined them and John slumped back into his seat.

They moved forward again, leaving the soldiers behind, but a particularly jarring jolt roused Grün from his stupor. He flailed, catching Gregson in the shoulder so both men fell to the floor of the truck. John tried to held them but a kick knocked into his chin to rattle his skull. Sagging back, he tried to blink himself to full consciousness.

It was already too late. The truck went to stop, someone in the cab hearing the noise, but Grün tackled Gregson from the back and they hit the road. John blinked to try and focus as noises from his side drew his attention. The grunting from the men on the road dragged him from a rousing Anna and Johann to notice Grün got his handcuffs around Gregson's neck and pulled until the man's face tinged blue.

John staggered to get out of the truck but a crack split the air. He froze before diving back to cover Johann's mouth when the boy went to scream while Anna covered her own mouth. All three of them watched the body of Grün fall onto the road as the side of his head not facing them no longer existed.

He turned to see Ms. Schlegel, hands shaking slightly in her hold on the rifle she stuck through the opening of the cab that looked into the back, returned it under the dashboard. She nodded at John before facing forward again. He gaped before taking his hand from Johann's mouth and turning to Anna.

Her furious nod was enough to have him out of the back of the truck and running to free Gregson from Grün's hold. Unwrapping the man's neck allowed him to gasp for air and John helped him back into the truck to try and breathe normally again. "Are you alright?"

Gregon nodded, massaging his neck, and John turned to where Ross and Slade stood over Grün's body. Ross ran a hand over his head and clicked his teeth. "The Russians heard that shot."

"Ms. Schlegel-"

"She's a crack shot." Slade tittered, John noting the way the man trembled in the presence of the body before them. "Said he'd… He'd be the one over them and he…"

John faced Ross, "Not an exemplar boss was he?"

"The tales all say he took his liberties where he could and without consideration for whether anyone wanted his attentions." Ross sighed, "She didn't want to be in the same truck with him but we didn't have room anywhere else."

"She saved Gregson's life."

"And killed a Nazi." Slade agreed with John as they both faced Ross.

Ross only shrugged, "I didn't want him anyway and now that I don't have to keep him…" He analyzed the area. "It'll be light soon. Let's drag him into the woods."

Between the three men they managed to get Grün's body far enough from the road that no one would notice it. All of them dusted off their hands and tried to get all traces of the act from their clothing. Ross could only snort.

"Let the wolves have him. See how merciful they are to the Reich." He spit on Grün's body. "Good riddance."

Slade and Ross headed back to the truck, leaving John with the body. He stared for a moment more before joining them. Climbing back into the truck he took Grün's former seat so Anna faced him, combing Johann's hair, and took a breath.

"Is he-?" John nodded and she managed a shuddering breath. "Then it's all over. It's all really over."

John covered the hand in her lap with his. "It's over Anna. We're free."

She squeezed his hand back and they settled as the truck started to move again, bearing them toward their freedom.

* * *

Kandahar, Present Day

Anna looked down at the instructions again before groaning. She pulled at the scarf wrapped around her head to make sure her hair was covered and pushed into the raucous pub. Multiple languages assaulted her ears as the enduring smell of alcohol in all its varieties slopped and slurped about her.

Pushing carefully through the crowd, avoiding treading on any toes in her quest for a back corner, Anna kept one hand at the scarf on her head and the other wrapped over her chest to protect from errant elbows and the inevitable pickpockets making their wage in the bar. A few men called out to her but she steadfastly ignored them while slipping and pushing toward her destination. One man's hand landed on her arm and turned her to the bar. She slid on the floor when he latched her to his side.

"Trying to get away so soon?" He offered her some of his drink and Anna leaned away from it. He laughed, "What? Teetotaler?"

"I prefer my drinks to not be drunk before I get to them." Anna tried to extricate herself from his grasp but his fingers latched tighter. "Remove your hand or lose a finger."

"I'm so scared I think I just-" He cried out as Anna reached over and cracked one of his fingers. His arm released and she sidestepped him when he crumpled to his knees. "You broke my finger!"

"I warned you." Anna nodded at his finger. "Better set that before too long or someone'll have to break it again to get it healing right."

"You bitch!"

Anna tilted her head and snorted, "You did wet yourself. Must've been the reaction to how much you drank and the pain."

"I'll-" He rose, as if to come toward her, but Anna grabbed his injured hand and tugged on another finger.

"I'd think very carefully about your next move. You've got two-hundred-five more bones in your body and I know how to break every one of them while naming them scientifically and in English." She took a step forward, lowering her voice to whisper in his ear. "Now, I'd suggest you get somewhere you can clean yourself up, since you smell like beer and piss, and then you get that hand looked at."

Releasing his hand, Anna walked to the corner where Amooz waited. She took the chair opposite him and went to remove the scarf but he shook his head. Her glare did not faze him.

"You need to be inconspicuous and I need to look like a good Muslim man not meeting with an agent of another government." Amooz sipped at his drink, the fragrance of strong Afghani coffee filling Anna's nose.

"I'm not a government agent."

"You wear their uniform and you earn your money from them. How you do that job is between you and them but I'll not have anyone believing I'm getting money in the same way."

Anna sighed, "You're not the easiest person to work with you know."

"I'm very aware as your fiancé tells me that every time we meet."

"Husband." Anna held up her hand, "Which should make this conversation a bit safer for the both of us."

"He's not here so you're in the same position as a moment ago. Except now, instead of being a fornicator you're an adulteress."

"That's not better."

"No, it's rather not." Amooz finished his drink and pushed the cup to the edge of the table for the passing waiter. "I think I've narrowed your list of suspects."

"And?"

"I'm sure you do not need me to tell you that they're the kind of people to visit the locations that are not places for ladies and fine gentlemen."

"I'm neither."

"They're not places for good people." Amooz crossed his legs under the table. "I'm sure you're also not surprised that such places exist… even in this restrictive environment."

"I know that vice is universal and I don't judge any place less for having it."

"It does make us rather hypocritical, does it not?"

Anna shrugged, "I'm here on a 'peace mission' surrounded by uniforms and guns. You tell me the irony of that."

Amooz laughed, shaking a finger at her. "You're a rare woman. I can see why John admires you so much."

"Thank you. I'm starting to think the same about you." Anna nodded her head toward him, "What about those places?"

"Following John's guidance and, speaking discreetly, to a few of the women I found the kinds of streets your predator prefers."

"You did?"

Amooz took his turn at a shrug. "It's not difficult. I grew up hunting and applying those techniques in the city to people is not very different."

"How so?"

"Every animal has its patterns. They know where to find food, where to find water, where they need to defecate, and where they make their homes." Amooz rubbed his hands together, "In this city there are places known for those sorts of things and, in relation to where the attacks occurred, I knew where to start looking."

"What did you find?"

"You were convinced the individual was a foreigner and probably one of your soldiers so I kept myself to watching them." Amooz snorted, "Which made the situation far easier."

"Because they're restricted?"

"Because when one of them is alone then you know to be suspicious."

Anna waited a second before speaking, "And you found a few?"

"I watched the ones that went to the brothels and the… seedier parts of the city searching for the kind of pleasure you're not going to find in public."

"Do you have suspects?"

"There are a few of them here tonight." Amooz waved a hand toward the bar. "The ones I've been watching are the four at the end of the bar."

Anna turned her head enough to study the men before facing Amooz. "I know it's not the dark-haired one with a mustache and the friend next to him."

"What makes you so sure?"

"The dark haired one is Thomas Barrow. They recently allowed him back here after… an altercation. He's one of the journalists for the _Manchester Guardian_ and he's homosexual."

"That doesn't mean he couldn't have done it."

"He doesn't have syphilis." Anna shrugged, "I just performed his physical and he's clean."

"What about the other man?"

"That's his photographer, Jimmy Kent, and he's just as clean. Also, he came later. Since neither one of them were here when the first incidents were reported I have to rule them out." Anna snuck another peek at the men. "As for the one with the mustache and the broken finger… I wouldn't put it passed him. He certainly took liberties with me."

"I did admire your handling of the situation." Amooz managed a small smile. "Although I was curious how that kind of display was going to keep your profile low for this meeting."

"I wasn't about to let him accost me."

"I didn't mean to say you should."

"Breaking his finger was better than landing a knee-" Anna paused, "I'm sure you're aware of where the most uncomfortable location for such a maneuver would be."

"I did once have the misfortune of trying to herd a particularly impetuous goat who kicked me there once." Amooz waved off Anna's laugh. "It's one of the risks you run into when you're a farmer."

"Did you recover?"

"The pain was intense but the doctor was sure I'd have children one day." Amooz sighed, "And my wife is carrying our fourth so there are no concerns in that department."

Anna glanced one last time at the bar. "I don't know anything about the last man. I've seen him on base but he's not been on my radar."

"Those were just the four most likely, given their… proclivities."

Anna shuddered, "I'm sorry you had to endure that."

"If it keeps the perpetrator off our streets and away from women trying to move about in peace then it's a risk I'll take." Amooz stood, "Would it be inappropriate if I offered to walk you back to your base?"

"I'm sure you'll stay whatever distance apart from me you'll have to so no one thinks I'm an adulteress seducing a poor man."

Amooz's lip twitched toward a smile.

They walked through the streets, guided by Amooz's knowledge to make sure they avoided pitfalls and possible debris in the path ahead. Anna kept her scarf over her hair, shivering slightly in the cold. Amooz made a noise and Anna waved him off.

"I just forgot a jacket."

"Did it surprise you how the summer could be so hot and yet you'd be cold in the winter?"

"I think everyone thinks of a desert and they imagine sweating there at all hours of the day and year." Anna shook her head, "It just takes getting used to. This summer I heard England was-"

A shot rang out and Anna immediately ducked to the side. She reached for her sidearm, bringing it to bear and waiting for another shot. When none came she searched for Amooz.

A rattling breath drew her attention and Anna scurried over the ground toward him. Her gun landed next to him as she ran her hands over his chest, knocking his hands away from the dark spot growing on his chest. "Shit."

"I think…" He coughed, spitting toward Anna so the warm flecks of blood landed on her cheek. "I think I'm-"

"I'm a doctor." Anna tried to assure him, tearing his shirt to better analyze the wound in the dark. She grabbed his hands back to press hard on the area and dug around for her phone. "And we'll get you to the base infirmary and you'll be patche dup in no time. I'll get-"

Something grabbed her under her armpits and Anna flailed for her gun. Her fingers missed it and her foot, kicking out in an attempt to throw her weight enough to throw the person dragging her back off balance, hit Amooz. He groaned and rolled, effectively covering her gun. Anna only managed a whimper of dismay before her face pressed against the side of the nearest building.

The rough mortar and stone dragged into her skin, scraping and cutting instantly at her as she fought. But the weight at her back pressed harder and a hand grabbed into her hair to force her forward. She spit blood from her mouth as her teeth sliced into her cheek and her lip upon impact.

A head rested close to hers, shoulders forcing hers against the wall as hands grappled with her trousers. Anna batted at them but another strike, this one over her ear, knocked her equilibrium askew and she slipped. The impact landed them both on the ground but as the weight settled on her back and even in Anna's haze she recognized immobility.

Hot breath blew in her ear as a biting voice hissed at her. "I hear you've been looking for me." Anna twisted and writhed as dirt and stone cut into her abdomen and hips. "Here I am."

The pain was nothing she could ever imagine or ever wished on her worst enemies. Her attempts to move her arms only wrenched them behind her back so her face and shoulders pushed toward the ground. And her voice was hoarse before she realized she screamed.

Whether it was a minute or an eternity, sounds came from the side streets and the weight shifted. Anna could no longer move as her arms flopped to hit the ground. Boots running from the scene thumped in her ears in time with the final wheezing gurgles of breath that passed for Amooz's final moments.

Another set of boots hit the ground near her but Anna could not move. It was not until hands landed on her arm that she flung herself away. Scrambling to the shadows, dragging her trousers back into place while sobs choked her, Anna held her clothes around her as the man approached.

"Doctor Smith? It's me, Doctor Branson."

"Tom?" Anna blinked at him, her arms and hands moving over her before shaking her head when he went to touch her again. "Please don't."

"Doctor…" He swallowed, glancing toward the dead man. "What happened here?"

"We… We were attacked." Anna blinked, looking around while pushing her scarf over her mussed and messy hair. "I drew my weapon after I heard a shot but it hit Amooz in the chest."

Tom crab-walked to the other man and examined him for a moment before rolling him back onto his back. "They finished him."

"I was going to get him to the infirmary and-"

"It's alright." Tom reached out a hand, withdrawing it when Anna shrank back again. "He wasn't going to make it anyway. There was nothing to be done."

Anna only nodded as Tom retrieved her weapon and checked it before handing it back. "What happened then?"

"I checked him but someone grabbed me." Anna put her hand up to the wall behind her before drawing back. "He slammed me against the wall but I struggled and we fell to the ground. Then he…"

"It's okay." Tom hurried to say, holding up his hands. "We don't have to say anything about it."

"We do." Anna pushed herself to stand, holding her clothes to make sure they stayed around her. "I need to get a test done right now."

"I… Okay." Tom pulled out his phone and dialed a number. It rang for a few moments before he finally spoke. "Syb? Yeah, I need you to come and pick me up. I know I was going to stay later but… Something's come up. I also need you to get the MPs here and have them call the local police. No… It wasn't… I didn't get into trouble. It was…"

Tom flicked his gaze to Anna, "It's a long story and I'm not the one to tell it but a man got shot and he's dead. No, for the last time, I had nothing to do with it. Okay. Just… Just hurry, please." He hung up the phone and faced Anna, "Sybil's on her way. She'll get you back to the infirmary and I'll stay here to… explain this."

"Thank you Tom." Anna put her hand toward him, resting it on his shoulder but shaking her head when he went to touch her. "I'm not… I'm sorry…"

"No." Tom hurried tell her, standing by Amooz's body. "It's alright."

"I don't… It's not…" Anna shrank back down on the ground, holding herself. "I don't think it is."


	16. Everything's Not Awesome

Kandahar, Present Day

Anna tightened the blanket around herself as Gwen zipped the remainder of her clothes into a bag. "That's the last one."

"And the kit?"

"I did all the necessary bits for it." Gwen removed her gloves and tossed them before grabbing a new pair. "Now for the cosmetic damage."

"None of it's cosmetic."

Gwen paused, an alcohol swab in her hand before she leaned down to address the cuts on Anna's face. "These I can at least help a little. The rest of it… That only heals with time, medication, and things I don't know if I can give."

"What?" Anna tried to turn to her but Gwen put a hand under her chin and forced her to look forward as she cleaned the scrapes on Anna's face.

"Something like this…" Gwen shrugged, sighing as she ignored Anna's slight twitches at the alcohol stinging in the wounds. "You need to find someone you can tell about it."

"I can't tell you?"

"It's not something I'm trained to handle." Gwen finished at her cheek and opened Anna's mouth. "It won't need stitches, so that's a good thing."

"I guess." Anna pulled the blanket around herself again and drew her legs toward her chest. "Did Tom find the man?"

"He says he saw a uniform and the MPs are sure it's a military boot." Gwen finished checking over Anna. "The local police aren't too happy about one of ours killing an Afghani citizen in the street."

"Did they explain-"

"They did." Gwen put a hand on Anna's shoulder. "I'm getting you a shower so you can wash off now. It might even help with your sore muscles a bit."

"Will it help us process the rape kit?"

Gwen raised an eyebrow at Anna. "Are you going to get weird about that?"

"What's weird about wanting it processed and-"

"We don't have the resources to do it here and you know it." Gwen chewed the inside of her lip before speaking again. "You could take it with you and test it at Harrogate."

"That's months away."

"Not anymore." Both woman tried to get to attention, Anna almost slipping off the bed in her haste to salute as General Crawley entered the room. He waved them both down. "I'm sorry to interrupt, ladies, but this is urgent."

"What is it, sir?" Anna held the blanket over her, noting how it dragged over the floor to keep her completely covered but General Crawley refused to look at her.

"Lieutenant Dawson's correct. I'm sending you back to Harrogate on the next flight we can manage."

"I'm not incapacitated sir. I can still do my job." Anna turned to Gwen but she did not meet her stare. "Did you tell him-"

"Doctor Branson and my daughter were the ones who filled me in."

"Sir, whatever they told you-"

"Is enough to make me think about resigning my own position." General Crawley took a breath. "This is on me, Anna, and no one else."

"I disagree sir." Gwen tried to argue, "This is all about the prick who-"

"A prick, Lieutenant, wearing a uniform that I represent. A uniform that killed an Afghani man with children and a wife at home. A uniform that has, according to your records, done this to no less than five other women." General Crawley worked his jaw. "I've already requested a replacement for myself as I'm resigning this command to try and answer for my actions in London."

"But if you leave sir-"

"Then the stigma goes with me." General Crawley stood taller. "I've mustered the base and we'll find the guilty party when we determine where everyone was."

Both women nodded and General Crawley finally turned to Anna. "I'm so sorry, Anna."

She nodded, not meeting his eyes. "So am I."

"I've called John to-"

"What?" Anna's head flew up. "Did you tell him what happened?"

"I told him you were injured and I was sending you home but-"

"He can't know."

"Anna," Gwen tried to put a hand on Anna's shoulder but she backed out of her grip, impacting on the bed. "He's got to know."

"If he knows then he'd track the man down and kill him."

"I'm sure he wouldn't-" General Crawley when to argue before a knock came at the door. "One moment."

He left and Anna faced Gwen, shaking her head. "He can't know."

"And what's he going to think when you won't let him touch you?" Gwen put her hands on her hips. "Or when you might contract syphilis?"

"You've already given me my rounds of penicillin and if I keep taking it, with consultation at the hospital, then it'll be fine."

"And if you get pregnant?" Anna froze and Gwen folded her arms over her chest. "I know you got your period twice since John's been gone so it wouldn't his and he's not stupid."

"You've already given me something for that."

"You know that nothing's a hundred percent effective, right?"

Anna swallowed, "I'll take my chances."

"Anna," Gwen closed her eyes, turning to the floor a moment before looking at Anna again. "He deserves to know."

"It's not for him to worry over."

"Because he won't be worried as to why his wife won't kiss him or touch him or have sex with him? Because he's not going to worry if she's pregnant or taking drugs to prevent that? Because he's not going to worry when you're taking penicillin for something but you've not told him why? Because he's-"

"Stop." Anna put up hand. "Just… Just stop."

"As your doctor-"

"Don't."

"As your friend-"

"That's an order, Lieutenant." Anna bit out and Gwen froze, her mouth halfway open. "Don't say another word."

Gwen nodded. "Yes ma'am."

"I'll take that shower now."

"Probably for the best." Gwen led Anna to the stall and took the blanket. "I've laid out clean clothes for you. Take as long as you like."

"Thank you."

The hot water scalded her but Anna kept it turned up as far as she could. A vague voice, at the back of her thoughts, considered saving some water for the rest of the base but she turned the heat higher. And when it turned her skin red, if not already raw and almost bloody from the force of her scrubbing, Anna finally shut off the water.

She sank to the floor of the shower, drawing her legs back up to her chest and sniffing as she tried to hold back her tears. They came all the same and Anna finally let it out. All the emotion building up since Amooz fell to the bullet poured from her to join the rest of the water flowing down the drain.

When they finally finished, Anna wiped at her eyes and reached up to turn the water on cold. By the time shivers took over her body, her skin now tinged blue instead of red, she shut off the water. The towel abraded her skin and Anna finally took stock of her injuries in the mirror. Injuries John would notice the first time he saw her naked.

Anna swallowed and grabbed for her clothes, hurrying into them as if they could offer the comfort and shielding she needed. The weight settled like a familiar friend or comforting responsibility that gave her purpose. Something to give her a distraction from the reality of what happened.

Coming from the stall, Anna saluted to General Crawley before taking 'at-attention' stance. He turned to Gwen, who only nodded, and addressed Anna. "We took muster and Sergeant Green is missing."

"Sergeant Green was at the bar tonight." Anna bit at her lip, "He was someone Amooz thought might be our perpetrator."

"Major Bryant could not find him and, all evidence, says he's gone AWOL."

"And how do we find him?" Anna asked but General Crawley shook his head.

"We're looking everywhere we can but we've received reports that he's got… friends."

"Less than savory?" Anna took a deep breath, "Then he's as good as gone."

"He'll be found, Anna."

"No," Anna shook her head. "I don't think he will be."

"He'll answer for what he did." General Crawley put a hand toward her but Anna stepped out of his reach. "We'll make this right Anna."

"It's too late for that." Anna saluted him. "I'd like to be dismissed, sir, so I can prepare for the flight home."

General Crawley went to say something else but stopped and returned Anna's salute. "Dismissed, Major."

"Thank you sir." Anna dropped her hand and pivoted to Gwen, "I need that kit in my things as soon as you can manage it."

"But…" Gwen pointed to General Crawley. "We know-"

"It's proof, Gwen, and I need it if… If the opportunity ever comes to actually do anything with it."

"Not that you sound every convinced."

"I'm not overly optimistic, no." Anna squared her shoulders, "But there's no harm in being prepared."

"If you're sure-"

"I am." Anna turned to the door, "I'm very sure."

* * *

Scotland, 1946

John smiled, watching Johann run over the stairs and hearing his calls through the corridors. He laughed, turning to Anna as she took her slower perusal, and smiled even wider as she turned to him. Her eyes narrowed and she wagged a finger at him.

"What's got you so happy Mr. Bates?"

"I've got to have an ulterior motive to smile at my wife?" John risked the step closer to her, wrapping his arms around her, and leaned back to analyze everything about her. "You're radiant and I can't help looking at you."

"You're only saying that because I'm getting larger."

"You're carrying our child." John put a hand over her swelling abdomen. "That makes me think you're even more beautiful."

"It did take a bit longer than the first time." Anna put her hand over his, leaning forward to kiss his cheek. "But it's been no less beautiful."

"I hope you still think that when we're snowed in here come winter." John laughed and then cringed as something crashed in a distance. "I do hope that wasn't valuable."

"He'll come out in a moment." Anna warned, slipping from John's grip to lead them down the corridor to where Johann, with hung head, skulked out of a room. "What broke?"

"The vase. I wasn't-"

"English, Johann." Anna warned, "We're practicing for when you go to school. Remember, English when we speak English to you."

Johann nodded and scrunched his face as he worked through his slow, but correct, phrasing. "I was in the room, running, and I did not stop in time. I hit the shelf and the vase fell."

"You must've been moving very fast." John responded in German, peeking into the room and exchanging a look with a very relieved Johann. "That shelf is larger than you."

"I was going so fast you wouldn't believe-"

"John," Anna hissed and both John and Johann hushed. "I was trying to help him practice his English."

John winced, trading a look with Johann, "I'm sorry."

"It's alright." Johann brightened a moment, "Perhaps you should speak German and I should speak English since we both need the practice."

"Thank you very much." John ruffled Johann's hair. "My German-"

"Everyone needs to practice their language." Anna cut between them, pointing toward the mess. "And you can both practice while cleaning that."

"And where'll you be?" John urged Johann into the room as Anna walked down the hall.

"Taking a nap." Anna waved him off, "Go on. You've got cleaning to do and German to practice."

John huffed and joined Johann in cleaning up the mess. As they bent together, carefully chucking pieces of shattered ceramic into a bucket, John chuckled. "I remember doing this exact same thing when I broke a similar vase that belonged to my mother."

"Was she angry?"

"Oh no." John shook his head. "She got her vase from an aunt she wasn't particularly fond of and, since it was a wedding gift, didn't think she could just toss it in the bin."

"What about this vase?"

"This?" John inspected the pattern closely and then scoffed. "It's a matching vase. Must've been this aunt that gave one to my mother."

"Then they won't mind?"

"My aunt passed away a long time ago." John collected more pieces of the vase. "And my uncle spends more time in his cabin at the far end of the estate than he does here so I doubt he even knows the vase exists, much less cares about whether or not it's still sitting on his shelf."

"But you don't mind?"

John paused, meeting Johann's eyes. "Why would you think I'd mind?"

"My father…" Johann stopped himself, swallowing. "My fake father thought I never behaved like I should. Said I had too much spirit and not enough respect. He thought I wasn't going to be a good child for the Führer and-"

"You," John put his hands on Johann's shoulders, "Don't need to worry about any of that anymore."

"No?"

"No." John shook his head, holding Johann's gaze. "I'm proud of you being who you are. And here you can run to your heart's content over the moors and hills until you don't have the energy for it anymore."

"But my behavior-"

"You're very well behaved and you make your mother so proud."

"Do I make you proud?"

John smiled, "You make me very proud." He ruffled Johann's hair again. "Let's finish cleaning up this mess and you can take that wolfhound down there for a run through the gardens."

Johann brightened and worked faster.

They finished and John took Johann out to the garden to run with the wolfhound. It outpaced the smaller boy but its training forced it back to Johann until the younger boy realized there were sticks to throw. The game occupied both energies until Johann could only sag with his throws.

John took them both back inside and tucked Johann onto the sofa, the wolfhound curling on the rug in front of him, before going upstairs. He found the room where Anna retreated earlier and knocked softly on the wood. When no one answered he pushed into the room.

Half-darkness from the closed curtains kept her shadowed but John watched Anna's steady breathing beneath the blankets. He towed off his shoes and removed his jacket and tie before crawling onto the bed behind her. His arms wrapped over her, stroking over the evidence of their next child, and kissed her neck when she murmured something in her sleep.

"Go back to sleep love." He soothed, running his hand over her abdomen to caress her and the baby. "It's alright."

"If you're here then I don't want to go back to sleep." She adjusted to look at him over her shoulder. "Where's Johann?"

"Sleeping on the sofa with the Bonny Prince keeping guard over him."

"That huge dog?"

"Of course." John rested his chin on her head. "They'll be alright."

"Johann is small enough for that thing to eat him."

"The Bonny Prince has never even bitten anyone." John shook his head, "He loves Johann already. They're fine."

Anna pursed her lips before running her finger down John's arms as she half-turned in his grip. "If they're sleeping then perhaps we could do something else."

"Use our time more wisely?" John wagged his eyebrows at her, drawing his hand lower to take the blanket off her body so his hands could move over her nightgown. "I like the suggestion there."

"Then-" Anna bit her lip as John's hand smoothed up her thigh to tease toward the nerves that made her writhe.

"Is that what you mean?" John trilled in her ear, kissing there as his fingers worked between her legs to glide through her folds. "Because it's exactly what I had in mind."

Anna sighed, resting her head back on his shoulder, and rolled her hips against his fingers. John shifted forward to gain a better hold so his fingers could move deeper inside her. Her hand latched around his and guided him deeper, setting the pace faster, and rocked hard onto him until she came in a rush.

John drew his fingers out slowly, working through her contracting muscles to feed her climax, and left her only long enough to rid himself of his clothes. They landed in a mindless heap on the floor as Anna sat up enough to toss her nightgown aside. She looked at him over her shoulder and John stalked back toward the bed to let his hands wander over the expanse of her back.

She shuddered, leaning into his hold, and he laid them back onto the bed with her back to his chest. Taking slow motions that stroked and caressed every bit of skin available to him, John handled her breasts. Anna whimpered slightly, thrusting herself forward so he held more of her, and John bit back his groan when the motion rubbed her ass over his growing erection. It took a moment, forcing his breathing to slow, before John could move again.

But Anna offered no pity as she twitched and moved against him. Her body slid along his and each sound from her mouth just stoked him higher and higher. And when John could take it no more he slipped a leg between hers to open her to him.

They shifted together, fitting like pieces, and John moaned into Anna's shoulder. She clutched him closer, her fingers in his hair and her vaginal muscles tightening around him, before finding the leverage she needed to set the pace. It was all John could do to follow her lead so they moved and flowed as one.

Between her gyrating hips, the sight of her ass in the cradle of his hips, the weight of her breasts in his hands, and that sound she made at the back of her throat, John could do nothing but fly into a frenzy. She matched him beat for beat until they both went over the edge together.

Dozing together, clinging tightly to one another, John almost did not hear the knock at the door. On the second round he kissed Anna's shoulder and slipped away from her. She rolled into the blankets, burrowing there as John fumbled for a dressing gown in the darkening room before opening the door.

"Mrs. Hughes," John pulled the dressing gown closed. "Is something wrong?"

"Johann was begging me for supper and I was curious if you, and Mrs. Bates, were hungry." She jerked her thumb behind her. "I could bring you both a tray if you like."

"I understand you used to be my uncle's housekeeper, but doesn't Uncle Charles want you at the cabin with him?" John waited, noting the hint of red over Mrs. Hughes's cheeks. "I'm sure you'll enjoy the company more."

"So we both would, I'm sure, but I do still maintain the house here and when Mr. Carson decides his cabin is too stuffy then we'll all be in this space together." She pursed her lips at him, "Unless you don't like dinners made for you."

"Mrs. Patmore still works here."

"But I'm the one who chooses the meals and I'm asking you want to eat with your son before he eats you both out of house and home."

John laughed, "Mrs. Bates and I will be down shortly. She was feeling tired from this afternoon."

"Having a baby can be hard work." Mrs. Hughes eyed him over, "So can making one."

John swallowed, "I'm sure-"

"I'll have Mrs. Patmore keep some extra servings hot for you." Mrs. Hughes managed a hit of a smile. "I'm sure you'll've worked yourselves up a nice appetite."

"I'm sure we'll devour whatever Mrs. Patmore provides. Thank you Mrs. Hughes." John shut the door and turned to where Anna faced him on the bed. "What's got you smiling?"

"It's not like she's never had married couples stay here before." Anna shifted, the sheet slipping down her as she sat up. "There's no need to be embarrassed."

"Having someone know, in theory, what goes on between a couple and actually knowing are two separate things." John left his dressing gown on the chair and came back to the bed, laying out on it. "I forgot what a hassle living with other people in a house is."

"If we're a hassle-" Anna went to move but John tugged her arm so she bent to kiss him. "Are we a hassle, Mr. Bates?"

"My favorite hassle." John grinned at her before turning on his side and putting a hand to move her legs apart.

"John," Anna reached a hand for the headboard. "What are you-"

His tongue and fingers buried themselves in her and Anna grabbed the headboard with both hands as her legs widened. They shifted so her legs were on either side of his head and he could lick and lap to his heart's content. And to her orgasm. One he followed quickly with another round of ardent sucking and slurping.

But she stopped him turning them. Her legs ran down his sides as she dragged a wet line down his chest. A line she licked up before kissing John as she slid down him. They rode together, Anna taking control of her rise and fall while adding occasional bouncing motions to take him deeper. But it was when her fingers teased to play at his sack that John finished.

Her voice peaked a second later and Anna rode the last of their motions until both of them slumped together on the bed. She rested her head near his shoulder and John's fingers trailed patterns over her back. Tipping down his head, John kissed her again before sitting up.

"We'd better go eat before Mrs. Hughes decides to explain why we're not down there." John eased off the bed to hand Anna her dressing gown before taking his own. "I don't think I'm ready for that."

"In English or in German?"

"Either." John pulled Anna close, kissing her one last time before leading them to the door. "I'll leave that all to you when the time comes."


	17. The New Dawn

Harrogate, Present Day

Anna put the gun down, breathed out, and picked it up to rapid fire five times before pausing. She adjusted her stance and fired another five shots. One final adjustment and she emptied the clip. Pulling the slide back, she put the gun down and stepped back from the booth for a breath. Once it finished she pushed the button to call the paper target toward her. It stopped and she removed her safety glasses to study the target as someone spoke behind her.

"You're a good shot."

Anna turned in a rush, practically throwing her hard earmuffs on the small table next to her gun and spare shells. "What are you doing here?"

"I…" John jerked his thumb behind him, toward the door, and cleared his throat. "I was on base and thought I'd come find you."

"What are you doing on base?"

"Gwen got back and invited me for lunch." John stuffed his hands into his pockets. "Said she wanted an update on how Robert's weathering the shitstorm after Amooz was killed in Kandahar."

"Was that all she wanted?" Anna turned to clearing up her station, unclipping her target to fold into the bag where she put her deconstructed weapon and spare rounds. "Because I could've told her that."

"She seems to think you might spare her some necessary details." John waited a moment and Anna turned to him, her bag over her shoulder.

"Something else you want to say?"

"There's a few things, actually." He swallowed, "She asked me if you'd said anything else about what happened after I left."

"Gwen only just got back from her tour and her first question was if I'd told you everything that happened to me?" Anna snorted, "Why do I get a feeling that's a lie?"

"You think I interrogated her?"

"You're a reporter, that's what you do."

John narrowed his eyes at her before nodding. "You're right, I did ask her a few things."

"Such as?"

"I asked her why my wife, who seemed very interested in me when we were first married, came back cold." John edged toward her, putting a hand out to touch her shoulder but Anna retracted. "Why she won't let me touch her anymore."

"Maybe we made a poor decision." Anna shrugged, the weight of her bag knocking at her back and settling like the weight in her stomach. "We moved too fast and overestimated our esteem for each other."

" _Overestimated our esteem for each other_?" John scoffed, "Did we fall into a period novel, Anna?"

"I don't know what you mean."

"People don't say things like that to one another."

"Maybe they do." Anna checked her phone. "I've got a thing so I-"

"No." John moved to block her exit. "You're not dodging this conversation again."

"Dodging what conversation again?"

"The one about why you're different toward me. Why you won't look me in the eye and why, when I ask if you're alright, you snap at me or find some excuse to get away from me or try to say there's always something at the hospital when I know there isn't."

Anna blinked at him, "You've been checking up on me?"

"Of course I have." John pulled at the air with his hands. "You're my wife and I can't, for the life of me, figure out where it all went wrong."

"It's too much and I…I think it's me, not you."

"No," John shook his head, "That's not it."

"Why not?"

"Because you, Anna, are without fault." John let out a bitter laugh, "So I've got to assume that it's something I've done because otherwise you'd tell me about it."

Anna went to speak but stopped herself, swallowing. "You're innocent in all this and I'm sorry that I've put you through so much."

"It's not about 'putting me through' anything." John risked a step closer to her and Anna forced herself to stand still. "I'd walk through Hell for you, Anna. I just… I want to know what I did wrong so I can fix it."

"You didn't do anything."

"Then why won't you talk to me? Why do you speak to me? Why don't you sleep in our room?" John waved a hand around them. "You moved back to base the moment you got back."

"This is where my work is, where my things are, and it's… It's easier to be here."

"Because I'm not here?" John looked at her, "Is that it?"

"Yes." Anna burst out, eyes widening at the expression that dropped John's face almost as fast as it shattered his heart. "I… I needed space and I needed to be alone."

"Do you…" John swallowed, "Do you want to… Are you saying you…?"

"Maybe it would be best, for us both, if we-"

"I can't." John shook his head, eyes tearing and breaking Anna's heart with each one that proceeded to roll down his cheek. "I'm sorry, I know it's selfish, but I can't sign those papers if you give them to me."

"It might be what's best for us if we do."

"I won't divorce you, Anna." John swallowed, choking on his own sob. "Not unless you tell me why. I need to know what I did to hurt you so-"

"It wasn't you." Anna dropped her bag, putting the palms of both of her hands to her forehead. "It was me. It _is_ me."

"You?" John shook his head. "It couldn't be you."

"Then be surprised." Anna grabbed her bag and pushed past him for the doors, "Because it was me. I ruined this. I ruined us."

She walked across the base to the hospital, ignoring the whispers and stares. Her office offered her the only available solitude as she put her bag in the closet before donning her scrubs and coat. A cursory check in the mirror told her all she needed to know about her appearance before digging into the back of a drawer in her desk. The makeup there did its best to lend a hand in hiding the dark circles under her eyes, the redness of her eyes, and the lack of overall luster to her appearance. But it was what she needed to get to work.

And that was what she did. Checkups, check-ins, and endless forms occupied all of her thoughts until the quiet of the hospital alerted her to the hour. The one she liked the best. The one where there was no one around to trouble her at-

"I thought you'd be here."

Anna let her head go back a second, catching a glimpse of Gwen as she approached, and then returned to her paperwork with a shake of her head. "I was having a good day."

"Do I not make it a good day?"

"Not really." Anna turned a page, making notes. "And I didn't call your name three times in the mirror so I'm curious why you're here."

"That's not a question."

"Why are you here, Gwen?"

"My tour ended." Gwen knocked on the plastic surface next to Anna, who only shifted sideways to avoid her. "You're not even going to congratulate me?"

"Considering your first order of business, when you got back, was to speak to my husband I don't think so." Anna flipped the cover back onto the clipboard and handed it over the counter to the nurse. "Make sure this information gets to Doctor Ryder. He'll want it when he goes in for the post-op and the follow-up surgery."

The nurse nodded, leaving the circular desk space to vanish down the corridors of the hospital to leave Anna and Gwen alone. Anna faced Gwen, folding her arms over her chest. "What do you want?"

"A 'Hello' would be nice."

"Hello." Anna pushed off the counter, "Are we done now?"

"You're not going to compliment me on the promotion?" Gwen tapped her lapels. "They're temporary until all the paperwork goes through but I'm going to be _Captain_ Dawson soon."

"And how's your chaplain?"

"Jay? He's great." Gwen followed Anna, keeping pace as they stopped at each room to check charts. "Has another year on his tour but we're doing the email thing. Like what you and John did when you were apart."

"If that's a tip then I'm not taking your bait." Anna ignored Gwen, noting something on a chart before pulling out a tablet to make the note there as well. "I know a trap when I hear it."

"Would you rather I be direct and ask why you're not speaking to your husband?"

"About what happened?"

"At all." Gwen swung around Anna, blocking her turning the corner. "I know you had the kit tested and you proved its his DNA."

"Then you know why I'm not telling John." Anna faked a move and slipped around Gwen. "He'd only try and find the bastard."

"And good luck to him since the man's been AWOL for three months and the Army's been shit at locating him." Gwen put a hand on Anna's shoulder to stop her again. "He doesn't deserve this."

"I know that."

"But you've still been stonewalling him for three months?"

Anna folded her arms low over her abdomen. "It's the best way to keep him from this."

"He deserves to know."

"No, he doesn't." Anna shook her head, "He doesn't need this on his conscience."

"And you do?"

"It's my burden to bear."

"I was at your wedding, newsflash, and so I know you both promised to be there for one another no matter the circumstance."

"And this is me being there for him because-"

"No," Gwen wagged a finger at Anna. "I'm not buying the bullshit so if you want to peddle that you'll need to find somewhere else."

"I don't need to have this conversation with you."

"You're right, you should've had it with him when you got back." Gwen sighed, closing her eyes a moment. "I understand that I'm beating a dead horse and there's nothing I can really say to make you understand why you're making a huge mistake but I also won't stand by and watch you ruin your marriage because you're afraid."

"You'd interfere in my marriage?"

"I'd do a lot more if I thought it might save your life." Gwen snorted, "Don't think I haven't already gotten the rundown of this place from Jane."

"Why've you been talking to Jane?"

"Because you're not the only one taking her old job back here." Gwen stuck her tongue into the side of her mouth. "She told me about all the hours you're pulling here. The unreasonable hours you've been pulling."

"I'm within limits."

"You're pushing the upper limits and have been for weeks now."

"I'm fine."

"The kind of 'fine' that could slit an artery by mistake." Gwen held Anna's gaze. "You need to tell him the truth."

"Or what?"

"Or I'll do it first."

Anna watched Gwen walk away and turned back down the corridor. The door to her office opened in a moment and she wrenched her coat from her shoulders. Shoving it on the coatrack, she dug around in the closet to find her bag for the range. It took less than a minute to change before she was back in the corridor and only a few minutes more before she found herself at the range.

It was empty, something Anna only realized when she had to wake the corporal on duty with a hand slapped on the counter. He blinked, hurrying to salute and stand, and took her bag. A quick check that was in no way thorough, put Anna through the door and in the quiet of the range.

She unloaded her bag, pulling out the case for her gun and set the components on the shelf. With a deep breath, she set to cleaning her weapon thoroughly before sliding each piece together. Aiming it down range, easier her breathing, she pulled the trigger.

It clicked and Anna frowned, Investigating over the exterior showed nothing and she groaned before dissembling it to examine the component parts. There, in the barrel, was a worn edge that soon met the vigorous scrub of her metal brush to try and smooth the piece. The noise covered the sound of steps until a hand settled over hers.

Pushing down on her hands until she finally released the tools, John's thumb ran over her knuckles and his soft voice almost broke her. "I know."

Anna drew her hands out of his hold, facing him while jerking at her fingers. "What?"

"I know."

Her lip quivered and she fought to keep a hold of her emotions. A firm blink stayed potential tears as she spoke. "How?"

"Gwen told me." John stumbled through his words. "I thought I'd have to force it out of her but she just found me at the house and told me and-"

"She was wrong." Anna pulled harder at her fingers, accidently cracking one. "It wasn't her secret to tell."

"I don't think she saw that she had a choice, Anna."

Anna glanced down at her hands, "What did she say?"

"She said you were attacked trying to help Amooz. Said he'd narrowed the list and you were walking back to base when… When someone shot him and then… Attacked-"

"You can say the word, John." Anna let her hands fall, slapping loudly at her sides. "It's just a word."

"But it's not just a word, is it?" John insisted, "It's driven a wedge between us."

"I drove the-"

"No." John found her hands, holding there tightly. "You did nothing wrong."

"Didn't I?" Anna scoffed, "I traveled off base, alone, and walked through the dark alleys, and-"

"This wasn't you fault."

Anna closed her eyes, digging the palm of one hand there to try and keep the tears from slipping past. After a moment she just let them fall, giving a bitter laugh of her own. "Well, it's out in the open now. I'm glad of that at least. I don't have to worry and fear that I'll be found out because I am found out. My shame's got nowhere to hide and I'm-"

"Shame?" John shook his head, "Why are you talking about shame? I don't see any shame in this."

'Because I'm spoiled for you." Anna threw up her hands, "And I'll never be unspoiled."

"You're not spoiled." John raised his hands to gently hold her face. "You are not spoiled."

"But I am." Anna put her hand over his, trying for a moment to pull his away but giving up. "I've been on treatments for syphilis for three months and-"

"That doesn't spoil you." John lowered his head to ensure their eyes met. "You're made holier, and higher, to me because of the suffering you've been put through. And I… I could never be prouder of you than I am at this moment."

"Truly?"

"Truly." His thumbs ran over her cheeks and he carefully laid his lips on her forehead. "You're my wife and there's nothing that matters more to me in the world than you."

Anna sniffed and then broke down. John wrapped her in his arms and they lowered to the ground so he could cuddle her close. Her fingers tugged at his shirt to hold tightly to him as her emotions finally broke free from their prison to flood out. To join with his so they could finally be one again.

When their tears all ran dry, or dry enough that they could see again, Anna pushed back to see John. She brushed away her remaining tears, smearing the tracks on her cheeks to speak. "We should go."

"We should." He nodded toward the door. "He might get worried."

"He's asleep." Anna waved a hand at it before pushing herself to stand.

"Then what's the rush?"

Anna held a hand out to him and their rings clinked as he stood. She stepped closer to him, holding herself within his arms. "Because I want to go home with my husband and see our home."

He kissed her forehead again. "I'd be honored to show you."

Anna put her hand on his cheek, "I love you John."

"I love you Anna." John dipped his head down, pausing for a moment. "May I kiss you?"

"Please." Their lips touched and Anna cautiously slipped her hand to the back of his neck to hold herself closer to him.

They separated after a moment and John took her hand in his. "Let's go home."

Anna collected her things and John led her out of the building, past the sleeping guard on duty. Driving off base surprised the soldiers on duty but Anna ignored them to keep her fingers intertwined with his on the console of the car. And when they finally made it back to the house it was all Anna could do to even allow a moment to not keep him in her grasp.

The house was dark and when John reached for the lights Anna stopped him. She left her bag in the shadows of the sitting room and walked with him through the house. A house she knew only by its vague edges and hints of form.

"Can I take you to bed?"

Anna paused and then nodded, speaking when she realized he could not see her in the almost utter blackness. "I'd like that."

They walked together up the stairs, Anna's hand tightly clutched in John's, and eventually entered the room. Even without light Anna could tell where the bed was and pulled John to follow her there. He paused at the edge and whispered in her ear as his form surrounded her.

"Do you want this Anna?"

"I'm clean and everything-"

"That's not what I meant." His lips ghosted over her jaw. "Do you want this for you, right now?"

"Yes." Anna breathed and brought their mouths together.

Part of her wanted to rush, to run without reserve to the end they denied themselves for three months, but John's hands kept their pace slow. Each piece of clothing that hit the floor was a moment for Anna to try and take control but John resisted only long enough to calm her. And when they finally laid on the bed, his body over hers, he rolled to put her over him.

"But-"

"I want you to feel comfortable and in control." He soothed, kissing from her jaw and neck to her shoulders and then her breasts. "I want you to know how much I love you."

"John," Her fingers went into his hair, her hand hitting the mattress as she held herself above him and him to her. "I don't-"

"I…" He drew back, "If you don't-"

"No." Anna tugged on his shoulder and turned them again. "I want you over me. Please? I want-"

John kissed her, holding himself away until her leg at his hip pulled him down almost enough to crush her. "Whatever you want."

"I want to feel surrounded by you." Anna kissed him back, burying her head at his shoulder so he would not see her tears. "I don't want to feel separated from you anymore."

John nudged her back, facing her. "You don't have to. Not anymore."

His kisses covered her body like they had before. He sent her crying out a finish with his tongue and then his fingers and then both so she lay boneless and utterly relaxed under him. And he even waited in the moment she tensed before entering her.

They moved slowly, adjusting to one another again as they tried to understand how they worked in their new selves. Trying to understand how they worked with one another again. Seeking to comprehend the new being they were together now.

When Anna went over the edge the fourth time, sighing into his skin when he joined her, it was all she could do to keep him close to her. John tried to move but Anna tugged him to her with tightening muscles until he succumbed. He only moved when she shifted to put them on their sides to face one another.

In the dark and the quiet, with only their breathing to measure the passage of time, they found a place together. Her fingers stroked his hair, caressed his face, and eventually fell to the mattress when her body surrendered its energy. Everything about her surrendered to sleep in the safety of John's presence.

When Anna finally opened her eyes, she could only smile at the sight of John brushing over her hair with his delicate fingers. "Why are you awake?"

"I just wanted to see your face when you woke up."

"Because it looks so amazing?" Anna pushed at him and they both paused at her hand on his shoulder. "I look the same way I do every morning."

"You forget," John raised a finger, "I've not seen you in the morning before"

"In Bangkok we did. And in Berlin."

"Those were lifetimes ago." John's fingers slid over her arm. "We were different people then."

"We were." Anna focused on his chest, tracing patterns only visible to her there. "I'm sorry we've not had time to know one another lately."

"We will." John scooted closer to her. "It's all in the past now."

"I was worried I was pregnant." Anna burst out, sighing with relief and then hurrying to explain at the confusion on John's face. "I was worried that I was pregnant with his baby, that somehow it survived the day-after pill and…"

"It's fine." John quieted, "It's fine."

"But if I had the baby and you thought-"

"It would've been your decision, in the end, but for as difficult as it might've been, I wouldn't have given up any child that was half of you." John managed a little grin. "I'd like the other half to be me but I'm not picky."

"Stop." Anna pushed at him but John only dragged her closer. "We shouldn't-"

"Why not?"

"Because I've got work and I've only got the clothes form yesterday and-"

"And your uniforms are all the same." John kissed over her, working sighs and squeals from her when he sucked her at her nipples. "No one will notice."

"I'll know."

"And so will I," John's fingers entered her and Anna put her leg over his hip to give him better access. "I'll know that you're doing the walk of shame because I finally had you here."

She cried out her finish and then gasped when he entered her, holding her leg over his hip. "And, if you're not opposed, I want you again."

"Please." Anna held him to her in a kiss as he worked as deeply as he could into her. "Come with me John."

"However, whenever, wherever." He drove into her and sent them both to climax again.


	18. Catch Me

Harrogate, Present Day

Anna smiled, watching John debate over colors. "It's not that hard."

"It's the first room she'll ever see."

"We don't even know if it's a girl."

"It is." John insisted and pointed at the colors, "And this is a big choice."

"If you're so convinced it's a girl we could always do pink." Anna pointed to the colored collection. "There's a lovely selection of them right there and we can mix and match until we find the shade we want so we can paint with pink to our hearts' content."

"I don't want to give her pink."

"Why?" Anna pulled a pout, "Because every little girl has a pink room?"

"No," John rolled his shoulders, "Because I'm progressive and I don't think she needs a pink room."

"John." Anna took his hands, covering the swatches there, and kissed him. "I'm not even showing yet."

"I know."

"Then why don't we wait until he or _she_ is bigger than an acorn to choose paint colors?"

John's eyes darted down to Anna's abdomen, "But… I want to be prepared. I don't want to be caught off guard."

"We won't be. We've got ages."

"I just…" John waved a hand at the colors, "I just need to make it real, for me. I need to have something to help me get ready for the baby."

"And I love you for it." Anna dragged him away from the paint board, forcing him to put the swatches back, "But we've got other things to worry about right now."

"Do we?"

"We've a honeymoon to finish planning."

"I already told you, I planned it all."

"But you've not told me a single thing about it." Anna hung on his hands outside the hardware store. "Give me a hint?"

"I promise you'll like it." John kissed her lips quickly, "And I planned it that way so you wouldn't have to worry about anything else."

"What makes you think I'm worried about anything?"

"You've been so busy at the hospital and-"

"John," Anna hugged him, stopping in the middle of the pavement and earning them a few odd expressions. "It's alright, I promise."

"But with everything that's been going on lately-"

"General Crawley's fine and his retirement is entirely honorable." Anna shook her head, pulling John along. "The ruling was in his favor and he did everything right during his service."

"And you're alright with that?"

"Why shouldn't I be?"

"After what happened in Kandahar I would've thought you'd be a little…"

"Bitter?" Anna shrugged, "General Crawley did what he could with what he had to deal with and there's nothing more I could ask of him than that."

"Green still got away."

"And I've spent the last year getting used to the idea that I'll have to live the rest of my life with that." Anna intertwined their fingers. "I can't live the rest of my life hoping that something happens when nothing will."

"Why not?"

"Because he ran away. There's been no sign of him and there's nothing to be done but move on and realize that he's not integral to my healing." Anna glanced up at John. "Is he integral to yours?"

"He's…" John shook his head, "I just want that door closed forever and with him out there I just feel that there's always a chance that he'll skulk his way out of the works somehow."

Anna shuddered, "Now I've just got this image of a spider or something and I need to get rid of it."

"I've got a plan for that." John bent his head to her ear. "You could tell me what's in that package you had delivered to the house last week."

"Which one?" Anna kept her eyes forward, wending their way back to where they parked the car. "I ordered a couple."

"I'm talking about the one you snatched away and ran upstairs with."

"You've not tried to find it have you?"

"I'd be a fool to risk your wrath with that." John dodged her swat. "I know what happened when I accidently found my Christmas present."

"I know you were looking for it so don't even try to lie your way out of that one." Anna opened the car and got into the driver's seat while John took the passenger side. "Besides, if I tell you what the gift was then I can't use it as a surprise for our anniversary."

"Maybe not but then I wouldn't be thinking any number of salacious thoughts right now about what could be inside that box."

"Think all the salacious thoughts you want." Anna drove them through the afternoon traffic. "You'll be disappointed if I ruin the surprise."

"No I won't."

"Then you'll tell me what you planned for our honeymoon."

"Touché."

"That's what I thought." Anna drove them home, stopping in front of the house. "I am sorry we had to delay our plans for a day."

"It's one day." John leaned over the console to kiss her. "And seeing as our honeymoon's almost two years late…"

"We don't exactly do things in order do we?"

"Not really." John cupped her jaw with his hand, tracing down the line of her cheekbone with his thumb. "I love you."

"And I love you." Anna kissed him one more time. "Now I've got to get to the hospital or Gwen'll start the surgery without me and they'll realize they don't need me."

"They need you enough to promote you."

"Don't remind me." Anna shivered, "It'll be a whole thing and-"

"And I'll be clapping as loudly as I can through every bit of it."

"I know you will." Anna turned back to the wheel, "Best let me get on so I can get back."

"I'm counting the seconds."

"It'd be better if you counted the words you need for that article your editor wants before he'll approve your holiday hours." Anna pushed at his shoulder. "If you won't tell me what you've planned for our honeymoon you have to at least make sure we'll have one."

"What if it was just going to be a week at home where we try to be out of bed less than in it?"

"Don't tease." Anna grinned at him as John left the car.

* * *

Scotland, 1947

John paced outside the room, wringing his hands as the door would only open for brief moments to let Mrs. Hughes or one of the midwives into the room. Johann slept in one of the chairs, slumped over and snoring with his mouth open as Bonny Prince curled up under his dangling feet. Feet that reached closer to the floor every day and, even now, pulled up his trousers to show far too much ankle.

A cry from the room had John turned, waiting for a moment as his teeth ground together. But the door did not open and the only other sounds were the muffled voices giving instructions for the oldest of all human practices. He turned on his heel and readied for continue wearing a tread in the rug that lined the corridor.

"All fathers share this you know." John faced a man about his height with a prominent nose and bushily imposing eyebrows. "I might even suspect that this hallway has born the nervous strut of any number of fathers waiting for their children to come into the world."

"It's certainly not new Uncle Charles." John managed a strangled laugh. "I don't know why I'm so nervous."

"Because it's new for you." Uncle Charles put his arm over John's shoulder. "It's difficult for men in a way I don't think women understand."

"How'd you mean?"

"For all intents and purposes, we're involved in so little of the process." Uncle Charles reddened slightly. "We get to be there when… But otherwise we're just the outsiders."

"Have you been reading books for women?" John looked Uncle Charles up and down. "Because I've never heard you speak so…"

"Baldly?"

"Emotionally." John raised his hands, "Not because I don't think you have emotions but because you've always seemed so apart from them."

"It's interesting what spending a lot of time with yourself and a far more sympathetic wife can do for you." Uncle Charles chuckled, "Elsie's done quite a bit to soften me up so I better understand how to speak to women."

"Anna's enamored with you." John smiled. "If it weren't for the fact you're already married I'd fear she'd leave me for you."

"Nonsense." Uncle Charles snorted, "Your wife is yours entirely and completely."

"Good thing." John cringed at another cry from the room. "I just wish there was more I could do to help her."

"How so?"

"Even if my only involvement, thus far, was… the _making_ part of it, I feel responsible for the rest of it." John rested against the wall, pointing toward Johann. "I had no part in his life for the first six years of it. And even as she carried this child…"

"What?"

John shrugged, "I'd sometimes hear her talking to the baby, stroking over her belly and crooning to it. In German or English, it didn't matter. She just spoke to the baby and somehow I knew it understood her."

"And you want that for yourself?"

"That baby will come knowing who she is. It'll latch to her, know her heartbeat, and recognize her touch in a way it won't know mine." John nodded at Johann again. "He knows me now but it took time. He was nervous around me for so long I feared we'd never grow close to one another."

"And now?"

"We've learned, with time."

"All things come with time John." Uncle Charles sat on the wooden bench nearest them and patted the seat next to him for John to take. "I ever had children of my own, something your mother always said would happen."

"She wouldn't take pleasure in being right about it."

"And I'm sure I take none in having proven her so but," Uncle Charles sighed, "It's been a bit like having children of my own watching your family here. Seeing Johann running over the grounds, finally having someone to wear out the Bonny Prince, and fill the house with laughter again."

"We're ever so grateful you let us come here." John's lips twitched toward a smile. "The accents've been hard for Anna and Johann but they don't face the kind of hatred they would've in London or Manchester."

"It's why I want you all to stay here."

"What?"

"I want you to stay here" Uncle Charles put his hands to his knees, rubbing his palms over his woolen trousers. "I've talked it over with Elsie and, as long as you set aside enough money in the estate to support her sister Becky until she passes, we've both signed the papers to leave you this house and the estate."

"Uncle Charles that's far too extravagant and-"

"It's no more than you deserve and it's no more than you would've gotten from me anyway." Uncle Charles shuddered, "I didn't want to leave it to your cousin."

"Isn't he-"

"As my sister's son you're closer and, if we're being honest, I like you better." Uncle Charles winked at John. "This is the place to build your family, to make your own, and to start your new life."

"What about you and Elsie?"

"We'll still live in the cottage. You're not forcing us from house and home."

"All the same," John tried to gesticulate with his hands but failed to encapsulate his emotions. "It's far too gracious."

"It's just gracious enough." Uncle Charles turned as the door opened and John jumped out of his seat.

It took only a moment for him to stand in front of the door, almost frightening Mrs. Hughes as she peeked into the hall. "Well, I guess there's no need to go looking for you."

"Is everything-"

"Everything is just fine, John." John slipped past Mrs. Hughes into the room to see Anna holding something in her arms. "And she's alright as well."

"She?" John came to the side of the bed, putting his hand over Anna's and gazing down at the tiny nose just visible out of the tucks of the blanket. "She's beautiful."

"She's got your hair." Anna risked an arm away from the baby to pat the space next to her. "Sit here."

John eased onto the bed, stretching his legs out before wrapping an arm around Anna's shoulders. He kissed her head, rubbing at her arm before peeking again at the baby in her arms. "May I-"

"Of course." Anna carefully passed the little girl into his arms and John froze as the weight barely settled there.

It was the greatest paradox he ever knew. On the one hand the child was nothing. Less than anything he lifted in years so a feather in his hand had the same sensation. And yet, it was the greatest weight he ever bore.

She twitched in his arms and John froze again, turning when Anna giggled. "What?"

"You won't break her."

"She's like glass." John risked a finger to push aside a bit more of the blanket and see the scrunched face of his sleeping daughter. "I've never held anything this new and precious in my life."

"I very much doubt this'll be the last time you hold something this precious." Anna cuddled up to his side, waving her hand toward the door as it opened. "Come and meet your sister."

Johann hurried in, stopping short of the bed as if suddenly shy. John twisted at the waist to give Johann his first look. "This is your little sister."

"What's her name?"

"Margaret." John and Anna spoke at once, both blinking in surprise at one another.

"After my mother," John frowned, "But I hadn't told you-"

"I was naming her after Ms. Schlegel." Anna fiddled with the blanket around her waist. "For what she did for us."

"Then Margaret's a perfect name all around." John helped Johann onto the bed as Anna took little Margaret back in her arms.

"But Margaret's a name for an adult." Johann frowned, "Not for a baby."

"Then we'll call her Maggie, for now." John turned to Anna. "If you're amenable."

"More than." She stroked over the runched forehead. "Maggie Bates."

"The next addition to our family." John held his family closer. "I never thought I'd have this."

"Nor did I." Anna leaned over to kiss him and then Johann. "Nor did I."

* * *

Harrogate, Present Day

Anna parked her car and hurried into the house. The sounds of typing and occasional frustration came from the little study off their sitting room and Anna grinned to herself. With quiet footsteps, dodging the step at the top of the stairs that always squeaked, and managed to get into their bedroom before any sounds came from the rest of the house.

"Anna?" She leaned against the door, listening for John's voice and the indicative echo of the sitting room. "Are you back?"

"Yes."

"Then it's-"

"Stay right where you are," Anna peeked out the door, pointing at him when he raised a foot at the bottom of the stairs. "I'm not ready yet."

"Ready for what?"

"I told you I had a surprise." Anna grinned at him, "And I can't get it ready if you're up here."

"But-" John put his foot on the stair and Anna shut the door. When she locked it, Anna had to tramp down the urge to give an evil cackle at John's pouting groan on the other side of the door. "You're not playing fair."

"I'll let you in if you tell me where we're going on our honeymoon." Anna waited but no sounds came from the other side of the door. "That's what I thought."

"How long do I have to wait?"

"Depends on how long you'll keep asking questions." Anna called back toward the door as she moved into their closets to dig for the loose panel at the back. "The longer you delay me the longer you have to wait."

"Now you're just saying things to hurt me."

"It's your choice."

"Temptress."

Anna did not respond as she pulled the large box from the back of the closet. It thumped on the bed and Anna hurried out of her work clothes to stand, in her underwear, before the box with the dark red colors and no other markings. She took a deep breath, catching her reflection in the mirror and studying herself a moment. If she stood straight and rolled back her shoulders then she could _just_ tell that something grew there.

That _someone_ grew there.

Turning back to the task at hand, Anna opened the box and shivered. At the back of her mind she remembered the promise that sparked her first purchase of the items laid out before her. Items she had to return and reorder to get the right size. Items that she hoped would not destroy their delayed anniversary celebrations any longer.

"Get it together Anna."

She shucked off the rest of her underwear, snapping the various pieces and parts into place before checking herself in the mirror again. An adjustment here, a loosened strap there, and a tug at the bustier put it all right. Anna swallowed and stowed the box under the bed with a kick before opening John's drawers.

Two of his neckties went onto the little covered bench at the end of their bed before two of his belts thumped to join them. Anna checked everything again and, with a shiver, pulled on the diaphanous black dressing gown that came complementary with her purchase. A purchase that required careful back combing to remove from her cards before John noticed, her suggestions on her online shopping profile, and a fake email account.

With a deep breath she opened the door a crack. John was nowhere in the immediate vicinity but their house was not so large that a raised voice would not penetrate every nook and cranny of it. So she swallowed and called out, "John?"

If she opened a bag of cheese near a dog there would not be an equivalently swift response. He stood, breathing hard, in front of the door that Anna only left open enough for a sliver of her to show through. That, however, was enough to leave him quivering at attention.

"Would you like to come in now?"

"Yes please."

"Then I've a few requests." Anna opened the door fully and put a hand on his chest to stop him immediately coming forward to touch her. "First, you have to do everything I say."

"Okay."

"Second," Anna nodded at him, "You can't tell anyone we did this."

"Nervous about a little role play?"

"That depends," Anna slipped out of his reach and picked up one of the belts, snapping it so John shivered. "Are you?"

"I'll take this secret to my grave." John stepped into the room, shutting the door behind him. "You've not got the-"

Anna held up the whip, snapping it to leave John trembling. "I remember what I promised I wanted to do to you."

"Merciful gods in Heaven." John swallowed hard enough to leave his Adam's apple bobbing. "Whatever you want."

"Please take off your clothes and get on the bed." Anna stepped back, keeping her dressing gown tight around her as she watched John strip for her.

He grinned, laying back on the bed so his back leaned on the headboard. "Good enough?"

"Not quite." Anna took the belts and carefully strapped them to his ankles and kept him to the end of the bed. The neckties wrapped over her fingers as she pulled his wrists taut to the bedposts. "There were details to this."

"Wouldn't you want to whip me first?" John tried to joke until Anna snapped him with the end of it. "You're not going to-"

"Don't worry," She leaned over him, a hand teasing at his rising erection. "I wouldn't damage quality real estate."

"But you've got me in an odd position to…" John frowned, "What've you-"

"Trust me."

Anna stepped back, dropping the whip and her dressing gown so John could see all of her. From her head to the bustier to her lack of knickers, to the French garter belt, to the black heels. John's hips bucked of their own accord and Anna wondered if she even needed to do anything else.

"Anna-" He tried to move but the restraints kept him in place. "This is cruel and unusual punishment."

"This, Mr. Bates, is a celebration." She came to the edge of the bed, leaning over to kiss him. "Maybe a bit more for me than you."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, I'm feeling more myself." Anna licked next to his ear, relishing the shiver that passed through him. "And I want to feel-"

"You want the rest of your power back?" His question was barely a breath at her ear but she nodded so their skin scraped together. "Then do what you will with me, Mrs. Bates. I'm yours to use."

"Yes you are." Anna climbed onto the bed, kissing his lips as she straddled his chest. "And I'm going to enjoy having you at my mercy."

"Naughty girl."

"Exactly that." Anna kissed him thoroughly and began.

Her lips left no bit of his skin untouched. Creaks accompanied his moans as he tried to return her affections but could not move. She grinned against his skin, drawing patterns with her tongue while her fingers set to work teasing designs with her nails that showed as red lines before fading to nothing. And she did not stop until he pulled his bloodless lower lips between his teeth a bit too hard.

Anna took his lips with hers, dragging herself up his body so the material of her costume set afire his sensitized skin. She put her hands to their headboard and released his hands before looked down at him. "Ready?"

"For what?"

"You're going to eat me out and you're not going to stop until I've come twice." Anna took another look at him, "Agreed?"

John could only nod before his tongue and fingers set to work. Wet sucking sounds soon filled the room and Anna rolled into the motions. The flat of his tongue licked over her continuously as his fingers manipulated her folds to send sparks through her body. But she did not expect the hand and snaked over her abdomen to caress and knead her breast through the bustier.

Anna leaned into his hand, pulling herself up slightly to remove the piece, and dropped it over the side of the bed when John increased his efforts. Efforts that had her screaming out her first end mere minutes later. And even the potential cramp to his fingers as her walls clamped over them, did little to stop her as she turned.

He did not argue, setting back to work as Anna sat back down but stretched herself over him. With his tongue circling and sucking around her clit, Anna let her lips wrap carefully around his head. All she needed was the strangled moan and the furious increase of pace to sink lower over him.

It took no time at all for her to come and, before John could beg her to stop, she lifted her lips from him. Even the final teasing lick her tongue was nothing compared to the immediate sheathing of herself over him. Her fingers dug their furrows into his thighs as she trained her fluttering muscles to pulse and grip around him until they both shook with the exertion of holding off for the perfect moment. The moment that came when John wrapped his hands over her breasts and sucked the pulse at the base of her neck.

They came together, tugging at one another before setting to freeing John from his final restraints. The moment his belts thudded to the ground, John pulled Anna into his arms so they could lay there. Final shudders quivered and trembled through the both of them as they came down from their high together.

"Do you feel free?"

"I think so." Anna tipped her head, kissing John. "Thank you."

"I should be saying that to you." John kissed just behind her ear and then under her chin. "There's nothing I wouldn't do to repeat that."

"Really?" Anna let her hand drift lower, playing with his potential arousal. "Because I had some other ideas."

"Did you?" John twitched under her as Anna straddled his legs. "Because you don't have to-"

"I think I want to." Anna lowered her mouth to licked at her taste on him.

It was not too long before he rose to the occasion again, clawing at the blanket under them. Anna relished the textures of him on her tongue, the taste of them, and the hint of more. A more she wanted as she pulled back with a popping sound to mount him again.

This time she rode him slowly. They both adjusted to the sensation of their moving bodies, sated and curious at the promise of more, and found a rhythm that struck where they needed without rushing them. Tantalizing one another with a slow climb to the promising climax that Anna brought out of John when her fingers played with his sack and he invited her to join with his fingers rubbing insistently at her clit.

Anna sighed in John's arms, flailing slightly when he hissed out in pain. "What is it?"

"I think you just sliced me calf with your shoe."

"Shit." Anna looked down and noticed the ragged skin on his leg because of her heels. "I forgot I was wearing them."

"They don't look comfortable."

"I was occupied." Anna examined his leg, careful to keep her heels away from him. "It just broke the skin, there's no blood."

"Good thing." John sat up to check for himself as Anna pushed off the bed. "I wouldn't want it to ruin our honeymoon plans."

"Don't be mean." Anna raised a finger at him, unbuckling her garter. "I let you in on my secret."

"In time." John stood, taking her in his arms. "And you'll know when you need to know."

"You're the worst."

"I'm sure you'd like to think that." John let his hands wander over her body. "You know…"

"What?"

"If you don't take off the shoes then…" John stopped, "But I don't… We don't have… If you'd feel uncomfortable then…"

Anna teethed her lip before shaking her head. "I won't let him take anything from us."

"But it's how he-"

"He's not taking anything from us." Anna took John's hand and put it on her side as she turned and put her hands to the wall. "He's not standing between us anywhere. Not anymore and not ever again."

"If you're sure."

"John," Anna turned over her shoulder to John, dragging him closer so she could kiss him. "If you're up for it then I want you to take me like this. Before I remember these heels aren't comfortable."

John kissed her back, determined and steady as his hands smoothed over her skin. His fingers dipped into her, taunting her with matching massages to her breasts. Kisses and nips dotted her neck and shoulders until Anna sagged into her hold on the wall. A hold John used to stabilize her when he entered her.

It started slow, the fear twinging the needs of them both to ensure they were not entering territory they might regret. But as the pace increased, as her ass found its cradle in the space between his hips, as their hands and fingers moved over each other, there was nothing to do but succumb to the intoxicating pull of release. A release that drove any dark shadows away from them.

Later, laying bare with one another in the midst of their mutual ravishing, Anna tucked herself to John's side and breathed easily. His fingers glided through her hair, gently untangling any part of her hair that knotted during their activities, and she let her fingers trail over his chest. Without words, relying only on their matching heartbeats, they fell asleep.


	19. Scotland

Harrogate, Present Day

Anna looked up as her office door opened and smiled, "What are you doing here?"

"I thought," John took one of the chairs opposite her desk, "That I could surprise my wife with lunch."

"How thoughtful of you." Anna pointed to the pile of papers on her desk. "That's the only lunch date I had planned."

"Doesn't seem like the type to put out."

"He's not." Anna wrote a final note on one and closed the folder, adding it to the abysmally small 'out' pile. "But I'm getting through the slog and it's alright."

"Is this what promotion gets you?"

"You'd know." Anna pulled another form toward her. "What kind of lunch did you have in mind?"

"Something a bit more interesting that this."

Anna paused, frowning, and looked up. "What's got you so cryptic?"

"Well," John got out of his chair, coming around the desk to shift the files away from the center, and pushed Anna's chair back slightly. "I'm going to tell you all about where we're going on our honeymoon."

"You're finally caving?"

"Since we're leaving tomorrow I thought it'd be terribly bad form not to tell you." John tugged Anna's hands so she stood between his legs as he leaned back on the desk. "What kind of husband would I be if I kept that from you now?"

"You've kept it from me for a few months already." Anna looped her hands around his neck. "I am impressed you kept it to yourself this long."

"I had good motivation." John turned his head to look at the door. "Does that door lock?"

"Yes." Anna drew her finger down the line of his jaw. "And the blinds close too."

"Perfect."

"Why?" Anan tightened her hold around him, keeping John in place a moment as he went to move.

"Just curious."

"You've got a plan and it's not for lunch." Anna teethed her lip, "Oh for the days when it simply meant sharing a sandwich with one another."

"Would you rather a sandwich?"

"Since I've got about twice as much blood coursing through my system now, no, I'd not rather we get a sandwich." Anna kissed him hard and pulled back. "Lock the door John."

He snuck another kiss before slipping to the door. The lock flipped and the blinds flapped against the window as John hurried to secure them in the space. A moment later he was back, standing behind Anna and holding around her waist so his hands could rub over her abdomen.

"You don't mind if-"

"I'm rather enjoying this." Anna giggled when he ran his nose just under her jaw, kissing around her neck and the exposed parts of her shoulder. "It's like having an illicit affair with my husband."

"Imagine what we could do with that." John trilled against her skin, the hum of his voice vibrating through her to set the tiny hairs all over her body on end.

"I'm sure you've already thought of it." Anna tried to laugh but her voice caught when John's hands ran down her sides and back up to mold her breasts. "Why don't you tell me about it?"

"First it starts with things like this." John continued kissing the back of her neck, careful of her tied back hair. "We arrange clandestine meetings at your work, or mine, and try not to be seen."

"A bit more difficult at your work." Anna sighed, letting her head fall back toward his shoulder as the deep massage to her skin thoroughly relaxed her in his arms. "All those cramped cubicles."

"But I could squeeze under one, have you in my desk chair, and eat you out." John suggested and Anna jumped when his words timed perfectly to the fingers he slipped under the elastic of her knickers. "Or I could do that here. Whichever you prefer."

"Go on." Anna's hand grabbed the desk, digging into it for support as John's fingers played over her.

"Or we'd find the seediest restroom and-"

"Clean restrooms only." Anna shook her head, forcing her eyes closed. "I'm not getting staph or anything else that comes from a surface. I refuse."

"Okay, clean restrooms only." His other hand helped shimmy her scrub bottoms and knickers down her legs to leave her exposed to him. She gasped when one of his hands kneaded at her ass. "And nothing kinky, I promise."

"You're touching my ass."

"It's the nicest ass I think I've ever seen."

"You have to say that." Anna managed a little laugh, "You married me."

"I don't." John moved his fingers farther inside her before shifting slightly. A creak of wheels put him in her chair so his efforts resumed with great intensity. "I could compliment any part of your anatomy. I don't have to say nice things about your ass."

"But you do like it?"

"Now you're just fishing for compliments."

"And you're not finished telling me what the rest of this illicit affair would mean." Anna turned over her shoulder to look at John but bent over at the waist to support herself in a plank position on the desk when his tongue worked on her. "Bloody hell."

"It'd be a bit like this." John's next words were lost in the damp suck of his lips over hers.

Anna's elbows dug into the desk, trying to find enough friction to stop herself sliding over the shiny surface, and her forehead landed on a pile of files. They shifted and moved as she responded to John's efforts until she finally gave over to it. Her exclamation of ecstasy muffled in the files but before she could recover her ears pricked at the sound of John's belt buckle.

"And mostly, it'd be this." Her legs widened slightly, constrained a bit by her knickers and scrubs at her ankles, as John ran himself along her. "Whenever you want it, however you want it."

"You're going to be my sex slave?"

"Like I said," John pulled back, "I'm progressive."

He thrust forward and Anna let her head hang down. "This doesn't have to be progressive."

"Perfect." John leaned his head forward, dotting kisses along her cheek each time he drove forward. "Because I want to tell you about the surprise."

"The honeymoon?"

"That's right," John drew to the edge, "We're going to Scotland."

"What?" Anna shifted to pull his lips to hers. "We've finally going to Scotland?"

"That's right." John quickened their pace, holding Anna's hips with one hand and using the other palm to press on her clit and stroke her between his strokes. "We've got two weeks at an estate in the Highlands. It'll just be us and the green outdoors."

"You spoil me."

"I'm your sex slave, remember?"

"I thought we were having an affair."

'Same thing." John sent Anna over the edge again and followed her. His arms wrapped over her and pulled them both back to sit on her chair. Anna kicked off her trousers and knickers to swivel in the chair and face him so her fingers could brush back his hair.

"You amaze me."

"Because I take you from behind?"

"Because you take me on honeymoons to Scotland." Anna kissed him, holding his face with her hands. "How could I not love someone who always puts me first?"

"We both know that you put me first." John took a few strands of her hair and tucked them under pins to keep them out of her face and away from her neck "If you didn't then you wouldn't let me do what I just did."

"That was all for me." Anna reached a hand down, massaging and squeezing John slowly. "This, is for you."

"See, you put me first." John let his head lean back on the leather of her chair. "You treat me far too well."

"I do try," Anna slipped her legs back, "And I think I want to try again."

"What?"

Instead of answering, Anna leaned over him to take John in her mouth. Her tongue slipped over him, working slowly to coax him harder. John's fingers dug into the armrests of the chair and Anna wished he could card them through her hair. The scalp massage he gave her as a side effect of her actions always brought her libido right up. Of course, she smiled around him before dragged the tips of her teeth over him to leave John groaning, she did not need much of that lately with her second trimester dawning. Fertility proved its own libido.

She took a final drag, fondling his sack for good measure, and climbed back onto his lap to sink herself down on him. John's eyes, already rolled back in his head, roved under his lids but it only made Anna smile. Her fingers moved through his hair and she used the leverage of her grip to lean herself forward enough to kiss him deeply. A kiss he returned with liberal use of his tongue until his fingers finally found their way to her hips.

The rolling chair thumped against the back wall, breaking their kiss, but after a moment of shared giggles they crashed together again. It was all Anna could do to keep her hands off her husband and everything in his actions told him he had no desire for her to do anything less than hold him. They rolled together, the sounds of their joining both a distant memory and the loudest echo in either of their ears, and continued moving until John finally came. Anna, with a little work, followed him.

Her head rested on his shoulder, breathing in time with the rise and fall of his chest until her heartbeat was no longer thundering in her ears. She pushed herself up to look at him and smiled before planting a kiss on his lips. It proved enough to have him move and even gave her a bit of a grin when he groaned as she slipped away.

"But I wasn't finished."

"All evidence to the contrary." Anna ducked into her desk, fishing out the wet wipes and using a few gently on John and then herself. "I think you finished rather well, actually."

"Minx."

"Seductor." Anna tossed the cloths away and hurried back into her knickers and scrubs. "I've still got all that to finish before we can make our merry way to Scotland, you realize, and if I don't-"

"Then I'll whisk you away anyway." John grabbed her hand, kissing the back of it before pushing out of her chair. "I'm not letting you blow off the honeymoon."

"Don't be daft." Anna pointed to the 'in' tray. "But that's already huge. I don't want it twice that high when I get back."

"Only about that high?"

"Now you're getting it." Anna pulled him down for another kiss, "Now, you'd better right yourself and get back to work before they notice you're missing."

"Probably already do."

"I'm sure your sex hair's not going to help you much either." Anna tried to pat it down but the hairs stubbornly remained standing straight up. "I'm sorry about that."

"I'm not." John bent to look himself over in the small mirror on her wall, a lopsided grin hanging over his face. "I think I look rather dashing."

"You look ravished."

"I like that better." John put himself in order and bent over the desk to pick up a sack to hand to Anna. "And there was a sandwich."

"Charmer." She pulled it from the sack and pushed up her bottom lip at him. "You packed me a whole lunch?"

"I worked from home today." John took his original seat back to face her.

"On?"

"The rest of that story."

"The other John's story?" John nodded and Anna sat back in her chair, winking at John as she shifted to get comfortable and still absorbed the residual heat from his adventure there. "What about it?"

"I found out that he left Berlin in forty-five and kept up a correspondence with a Major Jack Ross from the United States Military for some time after the war. Also with a few agents from more… clandestine agencies of our government."

"To what end?"

"Operation Paperclip but all the information was still classified so portions of their letters were redacted." John shrugged, "I even acquired permission to see some of the old OSS files from the US and all they said was that Captain John Bates was integral to helping them finish a case involving the rescue and recruitment of some German scientists."

"But nothing else about the woman he married?"

"I found traces of a marriage she had to an SS officer, Alexander Grün, and a child named Johann but otherwise…" John flailed around with his hand a moment. "I thought about just publishing it as is and hoping that someone out there could volunteer the rest of the information to fill in the gaps for me."

"Like that reporter from London did?" Anna closed her eyes, tapping her forehead with her finger. "He was looking for a woman to try and connect her back with her family after sixty years or something. Published a whole children's book about it."

"Something like that." John snorted, "Funnily enough that man's name is John too."

"It's a common name." Anna frowned, "I don't claim to speak German well but isn't Johann the German version of 'John'?"

"I think so." John's eyes narrowed. "Why?"

"Because why would Anna Schmidt marry John Bates and then marry and SS officer but name the child of that marriage after her first husband?"

John grinned at her, shaking a finger, "You think she hid the child under the marriage to another man."

"It wasn't uncommon back then. I heard of a woman in Liverpool who fell in love with an American officer during the war. Her parents opposed the match so her father got the man transferred to Germany and her mother intercepted all the letters he wrote to her. The girl finds out she's pregnant and marries her sweetheart from secondary school to keep the child legitimate while the man goes back to America. There he marries another woman, has children, and passes away without ever realizing what happened to his first love."

"How'd you know she was his first love?" John shrugged, "I'm a sucker for romance but it's not always about love."

"From personal experience with you," Anna ran her tongue over her lips so John swallowed hard. "So do I."

"Anyway…" John urged her forward. "What's the end of the story?"

"It's like a BBC miniseries, to be honest, because the child of that little WWII romance grows up and applies for a passport only to find he's got two birth certificates. So he does a little digging into the name he doesn't recognize on the one and hires and agency who contacts the children of the family in America. They identify the man as their father and do a little digging of their own while he confronts his mother about it."

"Sounds frightening for her."

"Poor woman burst into tears and said he was her first and greatest love. Claimed she never knew what happened to him and tried to move on. Family in America finds an old photograph their father kept of the two of them, asks their mother about it, and all she knows is the side of the story where the woman never returned any letters and that he was crushed but tried to move on with his life."

"Obviously did, since he married someone else."

"True." Anna shrugged, "The families met and the woman from Liverpool got a copy of the photograph that basically told her that she never left his thoughts either."

"But tragic, for the other halves of that pair."

"True love isn't the only love you need to have a successful relationship."

"Good thing we have it then."

Anna grinned at John, "It is a good thing."

"Then, in the name of true love," John pushed out of his chair. "I better finish what I've got about our little WWII romance then."

"You'd better." Anna pointed after him, finding the file where she left off. "I want to know how it ends."

"You and me both." John cringed at the door, lifting the blinds and clicking the lock back. "Well, three counting my editor."

"Good luck." Anna called and turned to her packed lunch to keep her company through the rest of the files.

* * *

Scotland, Present Day

Anna opened her eyes and then immediately covered her mouth with both hands. John stepped to the side, beaming from ear to ear at her expression. "I'll take that to mean you like it."

"It's… It's like something out of a show." Anna tipped her head back to take in the scope of it. "How'd you ever afford to get us booked here?"

"I know someone." John winced, "Covered an obituary for a member of the family awhile back and they told me I'd have a free holiday here whenever I wanted to claim it."

"For an obituary?"

"It was a well-written one." John defended, pulling their bags from the boot to carry toward the house as the valet drove their car to the sheds. "The eldest sister in the family passed and she'd… She was a remarkable woman. I got to write about her extensively when I did two feature pieces on her back in the nineties."

"And there you go again, commenting on your age."

"I am wiser than I look." John laughed with her, "But no, in reality it was because she was my mother's cousin. Margaret Bates was one fine lady."

"And a hell of a shot." Anna and John looked up as an older man shuffled toward them, gripping tightly to a walker as it bumped and jostled down the cobbles toward them. "My father insisted she learn how to hold a rifle in her hands."

"Did he insist the same for you, sir?" Anna shivered slightly, pulling her coat tighter around herself.

"He insisted we all know how to use a gun but I never liked them." The man shuddered, "There was an… incident, when I was a boy, where I watched a man get shot right in front of me."

"That must've been terrible."

"It caused a stir of mixed emotions." He risked a hand away from his walker to wave them toward the house. "Come, Daisy'll have your rooms all ready and my earnest grandson will have finally finished with the repairs to the back gazebo."

They trailed him into the house, Anna gaping at the high roof of the interior and falling slowly behind as she tried to look everywhere at once. When she could stand it no longer, she directed her questions toward the older gentleman. "Did you grow up here?"

"After I was seven. My father's uncle owned the estate and, having no children of his own, left the entirety of it to him."

"Generous."

"Necessary." He sighed, "It's been one of my hard lessons that I learned just what loneliness can be when you're the only one left in a house of this size."

"I thought you said your grandson-"

"Oh, he and his new wife- she's been a widow you understand- moved here because he didn't want to take to city life any longer." He moved a bony shoulder under his over large cardigan. "And I think it's for her health as well. She's had some trouble conceiving and they're hoping the air here'll help them finally start their family."

"It can't hurt." Anna smiled at the man before pausing, "I've an odd question, if you're open to indulging me."

"I can only guess it's got something to do with my rather peculiar accent." The man laughed, "I was raised in Germany until I was seven. Spent my formative years in Berlin during the second World War."

"You survived in Berlin during that time?"

"My… father was a very influential man with the Reich." The man shuddered, "He was an SS officer with a few too many reputations for his work."

"Is he the one who taught you to shoot?"

"Heavens no. He died when my mother and I escaped Germany." The man waved off Anna's next question. "Get yourselves settled and we'll speak more over dinner unless…"

"Unless?" John finally spoke, frowning.

"Unless you had other plans." The man let out a toothy grin, "You made the reservation under the stipulation it was for your honeymoon."

"That we did but we'd like the company for dinner." Anna waited a moment, "From what I hear we're the only guests here."

"It's the season. We fill up for the hunting, the summers, and winter holidays for foreigners looking to celebrate Christmas like Scotsmen." The man shuddered, "All of them are watching far too much television. No one wears kilts anymore."

"Did you wear a kilt?"

"My father insisted. His uncle's wife was a Hughes, from Argyle, and his mother's grandfather was a Keith." The man opened his cardigan enough to show them the scarves wrapped there. "Scottish wool is the best."

"It's probably warmer than what I'm wearing." Anna tugged at her coat and then turned to John. "Fancy getting Scottish wool darling?"

"I think you just want me in a kilt."

"I could go for that too." Anna leaned toward John kissing his cheek and whispering in his ear. "Easier access."

"Later darling." John returned her kiss, and faced the man. "Thank you for letting us come."

"It was a pleasure. You did a favor for our family the way you covered dear Maggie's life and those articles… We were ever so proud of her." He paused, eyeing the hallway. "Actually… She was born in that room there."

"She was born in this house?"

"She and my three other sisters." He huffed, "Wanted a brother and got three sisters. What will you ever do?"

"Not much." Anna put a hand over her abdomen, "We're happy this one's a girl."

"Congratulations to you." He leaned forward on his walker. "If you're amenable to suggestions you could always use my mother's name."

"What was your mother's name?" Anna noted John put the bags down, gently massaging his hands to restore blood flow.

"Anna."

Anna blinked and pointed to herself, "That's my name."

"It's a good name." The man sighed, "She named me for my father, which is the tradition when you want to keep a name going in a family I guess."

"And what's that?"

"Johann, although my father's name was John because he was an Irish-Englishman. His father was German, however, so the family did not stray far from the Fatherland."

"I'm sorry," John put up a hand, "This'll be an even more odd question, but was your father a reporter, by any chance?"

Johann blinked at them, "Yes he was. He worked for-"

" _The Manchester Guardian_."

Johann's eyes narrowed, "How do you-"

"We've been researching your parents for a story I've been writing for a long time." John dug into his briefcase to show Johann a copy of the notes he gathered. "I'd gotten everything about him up to a mission he performed with the United States military in Berlin to free some German scientists."

"That was the mission that killed my German father." Johann shuddered, "I saw him get shot right in front of me."

"I'm so sorry." Anna started but Johann shook his head.

"There's no reason to be sorry for him. My stepfather, although he had no idea that was what he was, worked for the SS and specialized in killing Jews. He later kept those scientists hostage… as well as doing other things to them." Johann shook his head firmly, "Do not feel any pity for that man. I certainly do not."

"But your parents," John turned the subject back quickly. "Whatever happened to them?"

"What do you want to know?"

"How they came to be here. Why is the grave stone for John Bates in Manchester but there's no one else there? Why wasn't he buried in Scotland? What happened to him and your mother?"

"They lived their lives in peace here." Johann motioned around them. "My father, according to his final wishes, wanted to be laid to rest near his mother's grave in Manchester so she would not be alone as his father was buried in Germany. My mother desired to return one last time to her home in Berlin and be laid to rest with her mother and father there."

"They were alright being separated in in death?"

"Mrs. Bates, those who are dead are not separated." Johann gave a little laugh, "Although when my sister died, in Manchester, I laid her to rest with our father and had my father's casket moved to Berlin to be with my mother."

"But the stone-"

"Is still in Manchester since it represents the part of my father that will always be in the city that enabled him to meet my mother." Johann's lips twitched to a smile. "But my parents…. They aren't cold in the ground in Manchester or in Berlin. They're here, in this house, where they had the happiest times of their lives together. Where they raised us. They're in the old building where my parents met, the flats they shared, the places where they made their memories."

Johann waited but neither Anna nor John said a word. "The dead are not where their bodies lie but where their spirits reside and I doubt they're spending eternity in the cold ground."

"That's a very… interesting perspective." Anna looked around, "But we've kept you long enough Mr. Johann and-"

"Please, Papa Johann. You're young enough to be my grandchildren and that's what they call me."

Anna leaned forward to kiss his cheek. "Then, Papa Johann, thank you for helping us find the end to this story."

"Stories like this are only just beginning." He winked at them, "And you have my permission to tell my parents' stories, Mr. Bates. The world needs to know that love like theirs exists."

"Yes it does." John shook Papa Johann's hand. "And we'll be down for dinner, if the offer's still open."

"Of course it is. I don't want to dine alone." Papa Johann redirected his walker to the stairs. "And we can talk about more of what you learned about my parents. Perhaps I'll even set the record straight for you."

"I'd like that." John faced Anna, "What a coincidence."

"It couldn't have worked so perfectly if you'd planned it." She reached for a case but John beat her to it. "I'm pregnant, not an invalid."

"All the same." He nodded at the door, "Grab that?"

Anna opened the door and took her tour of the bedroom before sitting on the edge of the bed as John arranged their luggage. "Could do with a fire."

"Do you need a little ambiance, Mrs. Bates?" John trilled at her and Anna laughed.

"No, I need to stop bloody freezing."

"There's a thermostat right over there."

Anna pushed herself off the bed and turned the controls as high as she wanted them before removing her coat to hang in the closet. "It's cozy, otherwise. It'd be a balm in summer."

"Maybe next year I'll try and book us in the busy season."

"I'd rather you not." Anna shook her head, "I prefer my holidays as uncrowded as possible."

"Must rule out all the fun locations."

"We met in Bangkok so tell me again about ruling out fun locations." Anna laid back down on the bed. "The mattress here, however, is far more comfortable than the ones we had in Bangkok."

"Really." John kicked off his shoes and took the spot next to her. "You're right."

"It's like being on a cloud John." Anna rolled toward him, moving some of his hair from his eyes. "Thank you for this."

"It's my pleasure." He surged up to kiss her, rolling her onto her back and kissing down her body while removing her clothes. "Now let me see to yours."

By the time her last piece of clothing hit the floor, Anna was already leaving her voice to echo over the room. Her fingers could barely open John's buttons or manage any of the finger points of dexterity that would leave him exposed to her. Instead, he had to leave her quivering body in the afterglow of orgasm while he rendered himself as naked as she was.

Then, with a kiss to her abdomen, John entered her. They moved together, floating among the clouds as the bed enveloped them, until Anna's nails dug into his back. Almost with as much determination as he showed to leave her trembling under the slow assault, John abandoned it in favor of a frenzied pace that lodged himself as deeply inside her as he could manage. Each motion and movement struck where she needed and a tilt of her hips had Anna crying out toward the ceiling again.

John's fingers played over her until she crashed, leaving her high for the welcoming embrace of hazy climax, and he joined her soon afterward. They lay together, his breath hot and ragged against her ear, until he rolled them to their sides. After a few moments, when they stopped breathing so heavily, John spoke.

"The world deserves to know our story too."

"What?"

"Our story." John carefully placed a loose piece of hair behind Anna's ear. "Papa Johann was talking about how the world deserves to know his parents' story and I was thinking that it deserves to know our story too."

"Why?"

"Because, for all the chances and coincidences, and horrible experience we're still here." John kissed her forehead, pulling her closer as his hands wandered over her back. "We made it this far and we'll make it farther."

"The world doesn't have to know our story." Anna pushed some of John's hair back, shivering when one of his hands tempted to touch at her breasts.

"Why not?"

"Because we know it. And one day our little girl'll know it too." Anna let her foot flide up John's calf as his touches at her breasts turned more insistent. "Those are the only people who matter."

"You think so?"

"I know so." Anna pressed her lips to John's, teasing with her tongue until his joined with hers. "And I'll prove it to you."

Then it was Anna's turn.

Her turn to set the punishingly slow pace. Her turn to leave John clutching at the pillows when her walls clung around him. And her turn to watch him fall over the edge before she could join him. With her leg still hitched high on his hip and her abdomen forcing them apart in a way it had not in similar situations, Anna held her husband close.

"Would you want to share that with the world?"

"No."

"Then there are some things we'll just keep to ourselves." Anna grinned against his skin. "And try not to look too embarrassed about when we go down for dinner."

"You naughty girl."


	20. Time in a Bottle

Scotland, Present Day

Anna smiled, her eyes still tightly shut, "I do hope you're not just going to tease me like that."

"Why would I do that?"

"Because you're the worst." She looked at him over her shoulder. "You've spent practically every minute of this holiday seducing me."

"Would you prefer I didn't seduce you?" John's hand traced over her abdomen. "Because, if so, we're a little late."

"You're right." Anna sighed into her pillow, scooting back over the bed toward him. "As you were."

"If you want me to not…"

Anna took John's hand, turning over to face him. "It's not that I'm not more than happy to accept the time and attention you're giving me. I just… I'm afraid you're trying to make up for lost time or something."

"Because we haven't done that already?"

Anna shrugged, "I dunno."

"I promise, it's got nothing to do with that." John kissed her fingers, "Unless you've got reservations."

"I guess…" Anna sighed, "I don't feel beautiful enough to be seduced."

"Are you mad?" John gestured to her body. "You look phenomenal."

"I look like a beached whale."

"Smallest whale I've ever seen." John paused, "You're not regretting having the baby are you?"

"Absolutely not." Anna took John's hand back to where the bump protruded. "This is the greatest thing we could ever do together."

"I think so too." John leaned over to kiss her but stopped just before her lips. "Could we…"

"What?"

"We've not done it like this since Bangkok and I know this gets a little more difficult the more our little girl wants to come into the world but-"

"John," Anna put her hands on either side of John's face. "What do you want?"

"Can you do it if we're…"

Anna's smile widened. "I think we'll manage."

"But if you're not feeling-"

"We're just going to have to get more creative." Anna shifted to get her legs up under her. "You're a writer, you should know how to be creative right?"

"I'm sure I could oblige you." John slipped off the bed and urged Anna to the edge so her knees and legs rested there. "If you're amenable."

"As I said, I've nothing against you seducing me to… Holy shit!"

John's tongue set to work, tracing the lines of her back while the fingers of one hand worked between her folds. His other hand sculpted up to hold her breast, massaging it before squeezing a nipple in time with a particularly deep plunge of his fingers. Anna crunched the blanket under her hands and buried her face to cover the noises he brought out of her. Noises she was sure any potential neighbors on either side of their room would regret… if they had neighbors.

A particularly determined suck at the rise of her ass sent Anna's back arching before it bent the other direction to thrust her hips toward John's mouth. But he did not stay there long. Instead he thrust forward and waited for Anna to adjust before driving slowly into her.

"You've gotten so much better at this than you were in Bangkok." Anna managed, her forehead pressing against the mattress while her body worked independent of her efforts.

"We're better at this than we were in Bangkok." John paused, pressing a kiss to the small of her back. "We'll have to get even better at it."

"What?" Anna struggled to lift her head, almost biting through her lip when John's grip on her hips helped him grind deeper inside of her.

"When the baby comes. We'll not be able to just do it whenever we please."

"Our schedules take care of that."

"We'll have to keep the volume down."

"I've not got a-" Anna shrieked out her finish and let a series of whimpers and moans take her through John's.

They lay over the bed, perpendicular to the headboard, and John turned to her with a laugh. "I think you were about to say you don't have a volume problem."

"Mr. Bates," Anna huffed, swiveling her head to look at him. "That kind of talk is beneath you."

"I stand corrected." He closed his eyes a second but his chuckles did not stop.

"What is so funny?"

"I don't know." He wiped at his eyes, the laugh still in his eyes. "Maybe it's because I've been too busy to notice but it's only just hit me."

"Hm?"

"Bangkok." Anna shook her head and John slowed down his words. "Bang-Cock."

"Are you twelve?"

"On the scale of one to ten."

"You've got a point there." Anna tilted her head to lay it on his shoulder. "And you're right."

"About Ban-"

"About me having a volume problem." Anna let her lips twitch toward a smile as she forced herself to climb on top of him. "But I think you might have one too."

"When my wife's riding me like a prize-winning equestrian I do." John hissed as she ground against him. "I may need to consult a doctor."

"About?"

"If you're experiencing erections lasting longer than four hours-"

"Ah," Anna tilted forward on her knees, "Lucky for you then, your wife is a doctor."

"That's true." John let his hands slide up her thighs, his fingertips barely brushing her skin. "I wouldn't want to impose."

"Impose away." She let his head run over her seam before inching down a touch. "Care to tell me the problem?"

"I've got this woman in my life and she's-" John bit down on the rest of his words when Anna took him as deeply inside her as he could go.

"And she's what, Mr. Bates?" Anna put her hands on his chest, gyrating her hips ever so slightly to the sides. "Remember, this is a professional consultation."

"Well, she's just the hottest, most beautiful woman I think I've ever seen." John's fingers dug into her hips so he could return her motions with steady thrusts. "And I can't stop thinking about her."

"Hence your arousal problem?"

"It's only a problem when she's not around to try and help me out with it." John's hips bucked off the bed and Anna met each thrust with a roll or grind of her own hips. "But sometimes it's like I can't get enough of her, no matter how often I try."

"Sounds like you've got a great turnaround time." Anna forced her words out, fighting the constriction of her lungs.

"I've lost something like twenty pounds with her."

"Close to." Anna squeezed her eyes shut, bouncing on her knees and ignoring the muscle twinges there. "But keep going."

"Sometimes I worry it's too much for her. That she'll think I'm just a hormone monster or something and that I don't love everything else about her too." Anna paused, meeting John's eyes as his hand cupped her cheek. "I'd hate for her to think she's not everything to me in every way."

"She'd never think that" Anna bent down, kissing John as deeply as she could. "I love you, John Bates, and I know you love me too."

"I do love you."

"Then please, Mr. Bates," Anna rose, holding herself at the edge before sinking back down with a solid thump of their pelvic bones. "Finish me."

In the haze afterward, Anna barely heard her phone ring. She fumbled over the bed, crawling through the mess of sheets and blankets and her husband's legs, to find it on the bedside table. Her thumb slipped but she managed to brush the indicator to answer the phone before it went to voicemail.

"Anna Bates."

"It's Gwen. They found him."

"Found who?"

"Green. Anna, they found Alex Green."

* * *

Harrogate, Present Day

Anna passed the kit and the filed report over the table. Her eyes barely flicked over Green, almost unrecognizable with his scraggly beard and matted hair. He moved, restrained though he was, and tried to get her to face him again. Anna refused to meet his eyes.

"I'm sure you're all aware of the situation." The solicitor drew her finger down the sheet before her. "The charges will be answered by the British Government and Mr. Green's going to-"

"Lieutenant Green." He mumbled and all eyes landed on him.

"I'm sure, _Mister_ Green that'll come as no surprise to you that your status as an AWOL soldier and your court martial for your charges has already led to your being stripped of rank and dishonorably discharged." The sharp cheekbones of the woman next to Anna reflected even more severely in the harsh light of the room. "Something I believe you should express a modicum of gratitude for."

"And why's that, Major Crawley?"

"Because if you were being charged in a military court, you'd face a firing squad." She adjusted her paper work, "As it is the British Government has made a deal with the Afghani Government for your extradition for the rape of no less than five of their women and the murder of one of their citizens while you were stationed in Kandahar."

"Even if you could prove that, none of those women'll testify." Green's finger hit the table. "There's no case there."

"You forget, Mr. Green, that you made the mistake of not being regularly treated for possible STIs. Given the advanced stages of your current STI, we've matched the strain to the one treated in all of those women." Major Crawley coughed, "We've also matched the relative size of your penis and it seems to match their descriptions."

"Couldn't forget it eh?"

"I believe the term, in all cases, was _unremarkable_ but that's not a direct quote." Major Crawley let a small smile slip out. "Further, the medial records of the women indicate the similarities and match the DNA swabbed from your last victim, who will testify that you did it."

Green turned to Anna and this time she held his gaze, refusing to blink. "What? You're going to face a courtroom and stand against my lawyers?"

"I'm not afraid of you."

"What about what they'll ask you?"

"I'm sure when I talk about how you shot and killed a man in front of me, whatever questions they have for me'll just vanish." Anna twiddled her fingers. "And, worst case scenario, I just let the kit speak for me."

"So," Major Crawley addressed Green's lawyer. "It's your choice. On the once hand he faces life in prison, here, and on the other he faces justice in Afghanistan."

Green's lawyer turned to him and then extended his hand to Major Crawley, "I believe we'll take the deal."

"Excellent." Major Crawley stood, nodding at them. "I'd wish you a pleasant day but I'm not entirely sure that's possible at this point. All I can wish you is that your days after this are long and dreadful, but that's unprofessional."

Anna pushed out of her chair, careful of her pregnant belly, and walked toward the door. Both she and Major Crawley paused when Green called after them. "It's not over."

"I'm afraid, Mr. Green, if you think that then you're abysmally misinformed." Major Crawley nodded at him. "Goodbye."

She and Anna left the room, greeting John and Gwen where they hurried from the sitting area. John immediately pulled Anna into his embrace and she returned it to whisper in his ear. "It's over."

John pulled back, "You're sure?"

"Yes."

"It's over?" John checked her face, "Like over and done with? Done and dusted?"

"It's all of those things." Anna gripped his hand. "It's finished."

"And so is he." Major Crawley extended a hand to John. "Mary Crawley, I think it's been awhile since we were properly introduced."

"I do seem to remember something about being overly intoxicated in Bangkok once." John shook her hand. "I can't tell you how grateful I am for all you did here."

"Anna did most of the work for me. The rest of it the military handled and the liaisons between us and the Afghani Government." Mary paused, "I hope they toss him in a hole with only himself for company. I'd love to see what demons greet him in the dark."

"No thank you." Gwen shuddered, "I want nothing more to do with him."

"I'm with Gwen."

"Just as long as you're also _with_ me in terms of the holiday tie I requested." Gwen played with a ring on her left hand. "Jay and I'd really like to look into that place you recommended to us in Scotland."

"You'll love it." Anna interlaced her fingers with John's. "Papa Johann is the absolutely best."

"Good." Gwen saluted them all, "As you were."

Mary snorted as Gwen walked away, "Bit of power runs to that girl's head."

"Better than alcohol." Anna embraced Mary, "Thank you."

"It was my pleasure." Mary nodded at she and John. "Glad I could repay a long-owed favor."

"Perhaps next time it can be one a bit less serious?" John shook her hand.

"I'd like that. Dinner and a show is far more my style."

"Ours too." John tugged lightly on Anna's hand to take her in the opposite direction and toward their car. "Speaking of dinner-"

"I've got to get back to work." Anna cringed, "I'm sure I mentioned it before."

"You're due any day now."

"I'm not due for another month, excuse you, and as I've told you I'm not an invalid."

"You're exposed to pathogens and things and-"

"And I'm not doing surgeries. It's all paperwork, I promise."

"Then it can wait." John tried to urge her toward the car but Anna shook her head. "Fine. But you're only doing an hour and then we're going somewhere you can find a food you actually like now before I take you home for a foot rub."

"Marry me."

"I already did." They drove to the hospital and John waved Anna inside. "I've just got to get something from the boot."

"What?"

"Just something." He waved toward the doors. "The faster you get started the sooner I can get you home for a foot rub."

"You must've planned some foot rub."

"I thought you knew about my magical fingers."

Anna reddened. "Say another word like that and I'll take you in this car."

"I'd not be opposed."

"The dimensions would." Anna sighed, "Plan for the future though."

"Absolutely." John kissed her quickly. "Go on, get inside."

Anna made her way through the building, smiling at her co-workers and a few of the patients before making it to her office. The files that always loomed over her almost tottered on the desk but she set to work, the promise of a foot rub giving her the motivation she needed, and soon there were actually files in her 'out' box. A box that shifted when the door to her office opened.

If her mouth had not already dropped in shock, Anna might have laughed out loud. But the nervous twitch to John's hands and the red in his cheeks kept her at bay. The entire reason laying below his belt line as a kilt hung from it.

"You said you'd like to see me in one and I promised to get one to wear for you so…"

"At my work?"

"I was going to do it at home, before the foot rub… or after, it wouldn't have mattered, but you needed to work so…"

"Get over here." Anna moved her files out of the way. "This'll be so much easier if you just kiss me."

"How'd you figure?"

"You'll forget what you're wearing and focus on me."

John was on her in a heartbeat and soon she sat on her desk. The dress she wore, with a far more forgiving fabric than many of her other clothes these days, hitched up to her waist and Anna fumbled with the folds of his kilt to find him under there. Their eyes met when she grasped him without restrictions.

"A true Scot?"

"I am Scottish."

"Works for me." Anna spread her legs as widely as she could in her state and John helped her lean back into his supporting arms as he dragged her to the edge of the desk. "This won't take long."

"Good. Because the breeze up this thing already had me going." John drove forward. "But we should keep it for later."

"Definitely." Anna grabbed the back of John's head, forcing their lips together so they could hide their sounds.

Each of John's motions only helped her burn hotter, rise higher, and tighten her hold on him. But a persistent jolt at her back gave her a moment of pause. The edge of pain there, like muscles shifting, tickled something at the corner of her brain. But all her focus went back to John as he finished and then helped her over the edge.

They waited a moment, breathing steadily, before Anna spoke. "John?"

"Hm?" He raised his head from her shoulder.

"I think you need to get us situated and down two floors."

"Why?"

"Because I'm feeling contractions and I think my water might brea-" Anna and John both looked down at the floor as it damped. "That was my water."

John blinked at her and then kissed her as hard as he had all day. Anna blinked at him, as he pulled back. "What was that for?"

"Because you're wonderful." He smiled, "Let's meet our daughter."

"Let's."

* * *

Scotland, 1985

John's breaths wheezed out of him, the machine trying to help him breathe switched off as the small, wrinkled hand of the woman sitting by his bedside released her grip for a moment. She turned back to him, her hands covering his far more wrinkled ones, and spoke softly to him in German. "We've had such a long life together, haven't we?"

"More than I could ever have hoped to see." He ran a finger down her face. "We've gotten old together, haven't we?"

"Older than we thought we'd get." She leaned into his hold, her fingers tightening on the hand between her own. "We never imagined we'd be lucky enough to have one another this long."

"Or at all." He whispered. "I still remember, for all the promises I made you at the airport that day, how frightened I was that I'd never see you again."

"I thought the same." She brushed his gray air back from his forehead. "But God brought you back to me."

"He never abandoned us." John managed another wheezing breath. "I love you, Anna. I always have. Perhaps from the first moment I saw you."

"I know I loved you from the first moment I saw you." She smiled, the wrinkles on her sin pulling to show which ones etched there as permanent laugh lines. "I could barely take my eyes off you."

"I promise, to my last moment, my eyes won't leave yours." He blinked, eyelids dropping more each time. "I'll love you however, wherever, and whenever. Because I've loved you for my whole life."

"And I'll love you until the end of mine." She leaned forward, pressing a kiss to his forehead and then his lips. "Sleep now. It's alright."

"I don't… I don't want to leave you."

"You're not." She shrugged up a shoulder. "I'll just have to wait a bit to see you again."

"I'll be waiting."

"It'd be nice for you to wait on me for a change." She laughed and so did he.

"I do love you, Anna."

"I love you John."

And then he breathed no more.


End file.
